The Realities of a Magical Post Apocalyptic World
by wd50
Summary: When a mature, pragmatic YGO fan is stuck in the Satellite, and her struggles for survival in this abandoned city. Priorities: Food, water, laptop, WiFi; not necessarily in that order. Oh, and saving the world. Right, probably. Full summary now inside.
1. A Post Apocalyptic World

**Disclaimer:** I do not own YGO 5Ds, this is a non-profit work of fiction.

 **A/N:** The story of an adult(?) in a teenager's body, struggling to survive through everything that is fundamentally wrong with the Satellite and the 5D's world in general, trying to bring reason and logic into this anime.

I've always felt YuGiOh 5Ds had a lot of common-sense loopholes. Like how did three teenagers build half a bridge? If Sector Security could force the duel runners into a duel, why don't they just force the same runners to stop? And why was no other global powers interested in Momentum? The machine producing limitless energy and capable of massive destruction (think enhanced nuclear weapons). So I thought I'd have a little fun with this world.

Featuring lives of average Satellite residents, and adult themes such as employment, the importance of infrastructure to an emerging economy, and where food comes from. :P

Starts roughly 6 months before Fortune Cup. I will be using English rather than Japanese names. Contains references to the Abridged series because I can't resist.

 **Duels:** No XYZ/Pendulum summons. Real cards only, except anime cards for their respective owners. I'm following the ban list in the Arc V-Tag Force game, which is the TGC July 2014 list. 4000LP, first turn draw. If you see any bugs with the duels or the rest of the story, please let me know.

***Spoiler, sort of. This is technically the full summary but it does contain a bit of spoiler for Chapter 17***

 **Complete Summary:**

When Chance alone determines the hero's success or failure, when Fate rests on the draw of a single card, the world splits into two, one of light and one of darkness; one of victory, one of loss. Thus was the laws of this universe, something not even the Crimson Dragon could change.

Then things got worse.

The unstable Shadow Dimensions would inevitably invaded the Light, and when all four dimensions collided, matter would be no more.

Desperate to prevent the imminent destruction of the future of this dimension, the Crimson Dragon summoned a being from a higher plane, a being capable of defying Fate, a being on par with the Dragon's God.

Unfortunately, it got me.

A reasonable, pragmatic adult now stuck in a teenager's body, struggling to survive through everything that is fundamentally wrong with the Satellite and the 5D's world in general. Why do your police officers carry a gaming device? How do you shower if you live in a subway tunnel? And where can I get some chocolate in this dump?

Priorities: Food, water, laptop, WiFi; not necessarily in that order. Oh, and saving the world, right, probably.

...

So yeah. That's going to be part of the story. Basically saving the world, and creating a world worth saving _,_ wreaking boundless havoc (no, no, we didn't just kill Kalin, but we did kidnap Crow, that's on me) and facing unspeakable terrors (what do you mean you don't have any conditioner?)in the process.

I'm really happy that I have finally gotten far enough in the story that I can post the complete summary here. Wasn't sure if I'd even get this far.

***End of Sort of Spoiler, Hope You Enjoy***

* * *

You know things are bad when you wake up in a universe involving repeated near-misses of destruction of the world, and your chief concern isn't the destruction of the world.

That's how I found myself waking up in the street at the heart of the Satellite of Domino City, trapped in the body of a 13-year-old girl. I guess there's an upside to this, I can't imagine my real body being otherwise intact in the real world (yes, I'm calling that world the _real_ world). But, let's, let's not dwell on that, I shuddered at the memory of the crash and pushed it out of my mind.

I had inherited some memories, and little else, from the former occupant of this body, so I wasn't irrationally terrified about being somewhere entirely new - I knew exactly where I was- which was _rational_ cause for terror.

You see, there were some details regarding the Satellite the anime conveniently forgot to mention.

Just the little things like its post-apocalyptic wasteland state, the utter absence of health care, education and infrastructure. Technically there is a police force, though the only role of Sector Security is guarding the Domino factories and keeping the satellites in the Satellite. Not surprisingly, there isn't an adequate social welfare system in the Satellite, Neo Dominos do provide rations, yes, rations, for minors, just enough to keep them alive. Shelter, clothing and other necessities not included.

The previous tenant of this body, best I can tell, had succumbed to illness and chronic malnutrition, which is why I found myself in one corner of an elaborate bomb shelter from WWIV, on a well-worn plastic table top that obviously served as a bed, hugging my knees, rocking back and forth, shivering from the cold, fear and grief.

The entire place smelt like mold and cat piss. Or as I later found out, it wasn't _cat_ urine. A recent rainstorm did not cleanse the air in these shelters, rather it washed all the filth of the Satellite into these tunnels now doubling as sewers. I didn't dare venture into the shadows, for fear of finding humans, as well as their remnants and excrement. There was no lighting except for scattered sunlight cast through sewage grates in the ceiling of my new abode, which, in the absence of any electronics that I could see, was the source of heat and innumerable dangers in my current residence.

Looking through the gap in the grate from my position, I could just get a glimpse of the Kaiba Dome- how fitting that only a corporate symbol should be all that remains of a better time.

Eventually, even the heat subsided, as the sunlight dimmed and cast longer shadows over my still form. Pangs of hunger eventually prompted me get out of fetal position on the piece of plastic I was using as a bed, and crawl out of my hideout like a common sewer rat, under the guise of dusk in hopes of find scraps. Shielding my eyes from the sudden light, I looked out to either ends of the barren streets, with rows of abandoned houses on either end. I grimaced.

...

It took one look at the outside world for me to lose hope- you can learn a lot about a place just from the first glance, if you know what to look for.

Having a large number of abandoned houses while a significant percentage of the population still chose to live underground, adjacent to aforementioned housing, suggest poor security in this neighborhood. Cracked but still technically functional petroleum roads, despite having had no maintenance in the past 2 decades, suggest moderate climates and lack of motorized vehicles (which are heavier and thus creates more damage). The absence of even weeds on the ground is indicative of soil pollution levels.

Taken all together, maybe not the best neighborhood (unless it really was the best neighborhood in the Satellite, in which case I stand corrected).

I stared wistfully at my reflection in a pothole that was large enough to display my entire body, in all its neon-green-hair glory. Not the bluish-green 4Kids had considered a real hair color, no, this was Season 0 Seto Kaiba green, paired with eyes of the same color- with the right clothes, I'd look radioactive. An anemic teenager stared back at me from the water, displaying the scrawny pre-pubescent body of Season 1 Ryou Bakura, and Yugi Motou's height. On the plus side, that's like three main-character traits, though Ryou really shouldn't count. I stepped closer to the edge of the hole, stretching my neck over the edge to examine the boyish haircut that was obviously trimmed with convenience rather than appearance in mind, and the eyes that shone with despair.

...

"Hey, kid, you alright?" The approach of an older man interrupted me from my reverie, I say older, he was in his early twenties, the best I could tell. I struggled to study the man who just emerged from a dark alley and was standing against the setting sun. Greyish hair covering half his face obscured most of his features, a long black leather jacket covered most of his gaunt form despite the warm spring weather, a deliberate effort to stand against the light. This was no doubt a loner, as uncomfortable with the world as the world was with him. The only distinguishing mark was the geometric red marks on his face and the glistening duel disk attached to his left arm; I could see several deck holders on his belt. In the Satellite, that's as well off as you can get.

"Yeah, I'm fine," I nodded firmly. I regarded him with the caution an adult knows a teenage girl should have when faced with an older man in the shadier parts of town.

"Are you sure?" Seeing my alarm, he took a couple of steps back, I visibly relaxed.

"As fine as I can be in this messed up place." I sighed deeply, taking a breath of slightly fresher air than the dank underground shelter, "With no food, water or any chance of things getting better unless I do something about it." I desperately needed to vent.

"Couldn't have said it better myself," he smiled, a tired and twisted smile, not altogether unfriendly. Though in contrast, even my old pre-exam nervous-breakdown laughter would have seemed genuinely cheerful by comparison. "But you be careful kid, nobody's satisfied with things in the Satellite, and nobody has the guts to change anything," His quiet laughter reminded me of a YouTube video I saw of the wounded hyena being eaten alive by leopards, "and they would stab you in the back if you tried."

This laughing lunatic fits so well with the whole post-apocalypse theme I almost laughed with him. Maybe it's the shock of this world, or the ease of opening up to strangers, I offered half-jokingly, "either I change the world or I die trying, 'cause I sure as hell can't live in a place like this."

"There're easier options," he said dismissively, there was something in his voice that I couldn't quite name.

"There really isn't," I rejected the idea outright.

My alternatives were to survive in the Satellite like this, or trick Rex Goodwin into letting me into Domino (without leading to global destruction). I didn't think I'd manage either.

"Whatever your choice in the Satellite, you'll die very quickly. The only difference is when you're buried." I'll be honest, this is not mine, it's a quote I read somewhere*. Not that he would know that, since most of the historical data before the 3rd World War has been lost.

He smiled again, a little wider this time. It really just looked like he was straining to pull up the corners of his lips to show as much teeth as he could. "Here," He threw something my way, I quickly dodged. A single duel monster card flew past me and landed on the dented cement.

"You're a jumpy one, aren't you?" He turned to walk away, "I heard that card was part of a great deck once, maybe you can get it back together."

He retreated back into one of the countless alleyways in the Satellite without further ado.

Had my thoughts not been clouded by hunger and resentment at this world, I might have recognized the conclusion of my first meeting with the ex-leader of the Enforcers- with me thinking he was a weird recluse, and him thinking he had just prevented me from killing myself. As it was, both parties returned back to their daily lives without a second thought.

...

Duel monster cards were more reliable than currency here, so I guess this was the modern (hah! modern!) equivalent of handing a homeless kid a twenty. Not much in and of itself, but very fortunate when you consider the income of your average Old Domino Dwellers. Maybe I can trade it for a meal.

I pulled my sleeves over my fingers to pick up the card, it was a trap card, Dimensional Prison, a staple in many decks, even in my reality several series after Synchro summoning. Only the name and the image were displayed, as was typical of duel monster cards in this world. Surely he didn't know the value of this card, or are trading card more affordable in this world than I presumed?

I wandered aimlessly for about an hour more, not daring to venture too far into the unknown for fear of getting lost and losing even my humble shelter. I retreated back underground like a rat. Sitting down on the cheap plastic table top that doubled as a bed, I sulked, I mean pondered the fate of this world, while moaning over hunger pains.

While having gained nothing but a duel monster's card, I was arguably lucky that time, had I met anybody who wanted me harm, I might be dead right now or worse.

I can't survive like this, I really can't. I didn't grow up pampered, but I did get accustomed to a standard of living above the poverty line, back when I didn't have to worry about death by starvation or hypothermia. I licked my lips anxiously, tasting blood from the cracked skin, and hungrily licked it off. I had little advantage, except my knowledge of the plot, aka destiny. That's got to come in handy, right? Hunger had already gotten the better of me. I sincerely debated going to Rex Goodwin. Evil manipulative asshole that he is, he would surely see the significance of whatever I chose to reveal to him. I kept that idea on the back burner and licked my lips again.

The only realistic approach to social mobility as everybody here seems to sincerely, unironically believe, is a trading card game.

Dueling though, might present a problem. I don't ride motorcycles. I can barely drive. I forgot how to parallel park the day I got my license, and have serious trouble backing into a parking space between two cars, and I always get nervous getting on and off the highway. The point being, I can't possibly duel on a motorbike going 200 miles/hr, or indeed any motorbike unless it was standing completely still. This entire world is based on the ridiculous notion of card games on motorcycles, an idea they had no doubt worked miracles with, but nothing can disguise the absurdity of the initial idea; I mean come _on_ , card games on motorcycles, really?

More fundamentally. dueling was not a life-altering miracle as Satellite residents seem to believe. Yusei was an excellent duelist before the plot started, yet it took the Crimson Dragon for him to get an opportunity to improve his situation. Similarly, Jack Atlas did not get to Domino City via his dueling talents, he got there because he was a Signer.

There are, however, other ways. _If_ you know the strengths and weaknesses of each major player in this upcoming debacle of a world domination attempt. In the growing darkness, I plotted silently. I can't live like this. For better or for worse, I _will_ escape the Satellite

* * *

 **A/N:**

*the original quote "Some _people die at 25 and aren't buried until_ 75" is by Benjamin Franklin

That's it for the first chapter, please read and review, all feedback are welcome.


	2. A Magical Post Apocalyptic World

**Disclaimer** : I do not own YGO 5ds.

* * *

"Are you ready?" A kid greeted me as he entered my, I want to say… Place of residence?

He couldn't have be more than 16, probably younger given the harsh living conditions. Ragged clothes layered on for warmth under an off-white jacket, faded blue jeans with real holes in them, and an unlit cigarette in his mouth that made me frown.

His obvious attempt at a mature, hardened look was largely hindered by genetics. With soft curly pink hair that reached just past his ears; large light brown eyes, and eye lashes that would hold a pencil, coupled with visible dimples even when he was scowling, he was cuter than a bouquet of teddy bears.

He looked familiar enough, but I didn't even know his name, so I was going to have to bluff my way through.

"What do you want?" I asked gruffly, as gruffly as one could manage with the voice of a 13-year-old girl. Had I been more familiar with this world, I would have talked more, but right now, communication is the enemy. Revealing exactly how much I didn't know was dangerous.

"You're not backing out _again_ , are you?" He looked confused for a second, then demanded testily as comprehension dawned on his face, "I don't have all day you know. Do you want my help getting arrested or not?"

I blinked.

"I'm just not sure..." I finally decided on a generic response, hoping it wouldn't reveal my ignorance of whatever the hell was going on. I tried to whimper and failed miserably, I never was good at acting.

"I'm not sure about anything anymore," I can't act, but I'm pretty good at improvising.

"I told you when you came to me, you paid just enough to get you into the Facilities, babysitting cost extra." He grumbled.

Seeing the horror on my face, my new companion sighed and sat down heavily beside me,

"Look, we've been through this. You go inside, they keep you warm and fed for a couple of months, and hopefully you'll be a little stronger when you get out. I mean, you don't hear a lot of deaths in the Facilities. Well," He chuckled darkly, "You don't _hear_ a lot of deaths in the Facilities. But most of the other kids I got inside came out alright."

Only then did I realize the mark on his face wasn't a tattoo.

It occurred to me, to my horror, that it wasn't the worst idea. Escaping the Satellite meant being safe for the entire Dark Signer arc, though evacuating from the Domino City Facilities might be difficult during Z-one's destroy-the-city phase.

"I heard horrible things about the warden though," I ventured, remembering back to the anime.

"Not in the junior detention centres where you'll end up," he shook his head, "it's really your cellmates you have to worry about. A lot of them are trying to get life."

"Trying to get a life?" That's very inspiring for underage prisoners, I tried to remain optimistic despite what I heard.

"No, trying to get _life_ ," he corrected impatiently, "so they didn't have to leave." I heard it the first time, I just didn't want to acknowledge it. I had a rough idea of the inside of the Facilities from the anime, if that was preferable (at least to some people) to conditions inside the Satellite, I had some real problems on my hands.

"That's messed up," I breathed out, and it truly was.

There's no way I would survive, or be willing to live, in a place where the kids outside are trying to get into jail, and the kids in jail are trying to stay there. On the other hand, I really, _really,_ didn't want to die.

I needed to get out of the Satellite, I suddenly understood the series' protagonists (and some of its antagonists), no matter what it takes.

"You get more food in prison," He told me, sounding optimistic about the idea, "and there's a real bed, and real rooms, and you don't have to walk an hour to the factories of get water."

The excitement in his voice stung. At that point, I don't think I ever hated anyone as much as I hated Rex Goodwin. How dare he throw half a city into this hellhole, for an outlandish dream of global domination? In however much time, magical forces would raise from, umm, somewhere, and suck the souls out of these people. For all anybody knew at this point, they were dead.

On the plus side, if the immortals sent the devoured souls to hell, half of these people might not notice.

...

I fumbled around for things to say, I thought I should at least _try_ surviving on the outside before getting locked up just so that I could eat, so I was relieved when our conversation was interrupted by a set of footsteps echoing through the tunnels.

Galen started, picking up a broken piece of broken piping and facing the entrance he just came from.

"Hanging out with gutter duelists now, are we? Galen" A perky white-haired teenager sauntered in (it's so inconvenient not having doors), her amethyst eyes twinkled mischievously, "Good to see you're still sending people into the Facilities for a living."

She was dressed in an over-sized purple suit that hang awkwardly off a slender frame, her white hair was tied in a fishtail braid that reached just past her shoulders. I almost wanted to make a comment about the purple Smurfs, but then remembered my own, let's say… 'utilitarian' outfit, and held my tongue.

I turned to my companion, now identified as Galen, but he didn't look like he had any intention of making introductions.

"What are you doing here, Felice?" The pink-haired teenager spat out, "This is my territory, get out!"

"Ah, but I have good news." Felice drawled, sounding a little stiff, "We have decided to grant you another duel, one last chance for old time's sake. What do you say?"

"Finally!" Galen's brown eyes lit up, "Just name the time and place, I'll crush all of you!"

"Tonight then," Felice saw me and immediately noticed my deck holster.

As I would soon learn, it's the first thing these people notice when they meet somebody new.

"You know, it's been a while since I've seen you in action. How about you defeat her first, just to prove that you can still handle yourself it a duel, and for my amusement of course." Seeing Galen's hesitation, she continued smugly, "I'm get in a bad mood when I'm not amused, and then I might just take back any offers I extended."

"You want to see my new moves? Fine!" Galen replied, "I'll finish with her, then destroy you and win everything back!"

"Um? What just happened?" I interrupted, utterly lost, "What did you just agree to? Did I agree to it too?"

"This piece of trash is a member of the Magicians," Galen said by way of explanation, "they took my territory two years ago, that's why I'm stuck in the sewers now. I've been trying to win it back ever since, but these cowards were always too scared to duel me!"

That raised more questions than it answered.

"Except the time that we dueled and beat you," I had to turn my attention back to Felice when she started talking, "And beat you again. But don't feel bad, maybe third time's the charm. Or maybe you'll finally learn your place and realize that you'll never get out of the gutters of the Satellite!"

"I'm afraid I have to defeat you first," Galen sounded apologetic, but looked way too excited to give his statement any sincerity, "don't worry, I'll make it quick."

"Don't be so sure you're going to win," Felice said breezily, obviously not even taking the comment seriously herself, "maybe this gutter duelist will wipe the floor with you, then _she_ 'll get to challenge us to a duel."

"Maybe I will," I grumbled half-heartedly.

I took out a stack of cards from a side-pocket, I could only assume it to be a deck, there must have been 80 cards in there. The deck Galen took out was at least normal-sized.

Flipping through, I was pleasantly surprised.

If this were the first season of the original Yugioh series, I'd have called this a good deck. Now though, more than 10 years in (or however many years by this world's standards), this deck filled with normal monster cards was seriously outdated.

"It's time to duel!" I exclaimed much more energetically than I felt, hoping to channel some of Yami Yugi.

I had picked out roughly 40 cards, warrior themed because that type had the most number of support cards, though the actual monsters still needed serious work.

"Let's duel!" Galen responded in kind, as our white-haired intruder leaned against the wall and snickered.

* * *

 **Turn 1: Galen's Turn, Galen 4000, Yuki 4000**

"I'll start," He didn't hesitate to take charge. "I summon, **Hardened Armored Dragon (lv4, 1500/800)** to the field in attack mode, then I'll lay one card face down and end my turn."

Sadly, no giant dragon materialized.

Neither of us had duel disks, so we dueled the normal (yes, normal!) way, aka by placing cards on a table (the same piece of plastic I used as a bed).

 **Turn 2: Yuki's Turn, Galen 4000, Yuki 4000**

"Then I'll summon, **Vorse Raider (lv4, 1900/1000)**. His attack destroys your dragon and 400 of your life points."

I wasn't sure if I was being needlessly dramatic, but imitating the way main characters spoke about dueling seemed like a safer bet than my usual style of random chatter.

"And I'll place two face-down cards to end my turn."

"Ha!" Felice laughed from the sidelines, "you really _are_ losing your touch, or at least your cards. Where're all your powerful monsters?"

 **Turn 3: Galen's Turn, Galen 3600, Yuki 4000**

Galen drew, and began to laugh uncontrollably.

Had this been another world, he would have been at least assessed by a therapist. But Felice didn't bat an eye, these people take their card games very seriously.

"I'll show you my powerful monsters Felice!" He exclaimed loudly even though he was dueling me, "Even luck is on my side. I have already drawn my ultimate beast!"

I rolled my eyes, though I noticed Felice actually looking interested.

"First, I'll summon **Baby Dragon (lv3, 1200/900)** to the field, then I'll banish him from the field to summon, **Red-Eyes Darkness Metal Dragon (2800/2400)**!"

Galen held his head up proudly, smiling from ear to ear, youth and energy radiating off of him even in this underground sewer-hideout with near-toxic level stench.

"And I'll use his special ability to bring back the **Hardened Armored Dragon** you destroyed last turn! Say goodbye to your Vorse Raider, Red Eyes, attack!"

My warrior was appropriately destroyed, decreasing my life points by 900.

Was this kid a minor character? I secretly wondered, his deck was certainly powerful enough.

I was pretty sure a couple of people had dragon themed decks, though none of them seemed to have involved Red-Eyes in the 5Ds series.

"Scared?" He mocked, not even pretending to pay attention to me anymore, "my monsters will help me win every duel and get my territory back!"

I smiled quietly, not sure how to respond or what kind of territory a scrawny teenager could control.

"Hardened Armored Dragon, attack!" Galen commanded.

"I activate my magic card, **Scape Goa** t!" I announced, flipping over the quick-play magic card.

Not have access to holographic technology, I picked up four small pieces of rock off the ground to represent each sheep token. "These tokens have zero attack and defense, but they will protect me from your attacks."

"Not for long," Galen replied, taking away a stone and tossing it onto the ground, "now you're left with three tokens. But that won't matter, nothing can stand up to my Red Eyes!"

"I wouldn't be so sure" I replied casually, drawing a card. Creature Swap, perfect.

 **Turn 4: Yuki's Turn, Galen 3600, Yuki 3100**

Since turbo duels, the most popular form of dueling, only allows the use of speed spells, other spell cards have tanked in pricing. Doubtlessly, this was the only reason I had so many.

"First, I'll play another magic card, Fissure, which destroys the monster with the lowest attack points on your side of the field."

"Too bad it is Hardened Armored Dragon," The pink-haired teen was beginning to feel uncomfortable, "my Red Eyes is still on the field, and next turn, it can bring Hardened Armored Dragon back to the field"

"If you can make it to next turn," I corrected, "I switch one scapegoat token into attack mode," I randomly pointed at a rock. I can now see why holograms might be useful, "and play Creature Swap. You see, with this card, we each choose a monster on our side of the field, and relinquish its control to our opponent."

"But, the only monster on my field is Red-Eyes!" He exclaimed, wide-eyed.

"I didn't see this coming!" Felice laughed, her amethyst eyes sparkled with genuine pleasure at Galen's setback, "is it you or is it her Galen? She's really giving you a run for your money!"

"And I give you my attack position Scape Goat token." I ignored the white-haired teenager.

Galen reluctantly placed his monster on my side of the field.

"And I'll summon **Neo the Magic Swordsman (lv4, 1700/1000)** in attack mode. With Red-Eyes and my Swordsman's combined attack of 4500, it's more than enough to wipe out all your life points."

"That's if they managed to attack. I activate my trap card, Widespread Ruin. This card allows me to destroy the monster with the highest attack on your side of the field, so my Red Eye comes back to my graveyard." Galen took the card from my field.

"Your Swordsman's attack still leaves me with 1900 (from 3500) life points, but you're gonna have to do better than that if you want to beat me."

I laid down one more card and announced the end of my turn.

 **Turn 5: Galen's Turn, Galen 1900, Yuki 3100**

"First, I play Summoner's Art, bringing the lv7 normal monster Red Eyes Black Dragon to my hand. Next, I summon **Dragonic Guard (lv4, 1500/1800)** to the field. Whenever a monster is normal summoned or set onto the field, he gains one counter, so he has one counter right now, allowing me to tribute him to special summon a level 1 dragon from my deck, and I choose **The Black Stone of Legend (lv1, 0/0)**. Now Black Stone's special ability lets me send him to the graveyard to special summon one **Red Eyes Black Dragon (lv7, 2400/2000)** from my hand."

That was a lucky draw, but I wasn't too concerned. I still have a Scapegoat and a Neo the Magic Swordsman on my field.

"Now, my powerful Red Eyes, destroy his warrior! Now let's see you defeat this powerful beast."

My life points went down by 700 LP to 2600.

It's true that Red Eyes was stronger than any monster I had in my deck, but that doesn't mean I can't get rid of it easily.

 **Turn 6: Yuki's Turn, Galen 1900, Yuki 2600**

I drew again and grinned, not exactly the best monster-destruction card, but it'll do.

"I equip _your_ Red Eyes Black Dragon with Big Bang Shot." I announced.

"What?" he gasped, wiping a lock of pink hair out of his eyes, "are you out of your mind? Not only does that card increase my dragon's attack by 400, it allows my dragon to deal piercing damage, which means when I attack your Scapegoat next turn, the difference between my dragon's attack and your token's defense would be subtracted from your life points."

"True," I admitted, "But Big Bang Shot also has another effect. I activate, Mystical Space Typhoon to destroy Big Bang Shot, and when Big Bang Shot leaves the field, the equipped monster is banished. "

"My Red-Eyes!" My opponent groaned.

"And now I summon **Celtic Guardian (lv4, 1400/1200)** , in attack mode and use him to attack you directly." I announced a little triumphantly.

Felice was awestruck, "You actually have a shot at beating Galen Garfield!" she exclaimed incredulously. I ignored her again.

 **Turn 7: Galen's Turn, Galen 500, Yuki 2600**

"Come on deck, don't fail me now!" Galen closed his eyes and drew, and smiled at the card in his hand. I have a bad feeling about this.

"I play a spell card, Dragon Shrine. This magic card allows me to send one normal dragon and one effect dragon into my grave, I choose Red Eyes Black Dragon (lv7, 2400/2000) and Red Eyes Wyvern (lv4, 1800/1600)!"

Felice gasped, "You have another Red Eyes Black Dragon?"

"Yeah," Galen replied, then turned his full attention to me for the first time, "this monster was supposed to be a surprise for the Magicians, I guess you're in for a real treat."

"Thanks kiddo," Felice grinned at me, she was a little older, I noticed. Late teens, maybe early twenties, so she was justified in calling me (in my current body) a kid, doesn't mean I appreciated it.

"When I have a level 7 or below Red Eyes monster in the graveyard with Black Stone of Legend, I get to shuffle that Red-Eyes into my deck and bring Black Stone of Legend into my hand." Galen grinned triumphantly, "I add Red Eyes Black Dragon back into my deck and Black Stone of legend to my hand. I already used Black Stone's ability this turn, but next turn, he'll crush you. I place two cards face-down and that's all for my turn."

"You're ending with no monsters?" Felice asked again. Probably not the brightest marble in the box, or just not great at children's card games, I decided.

"When I have Red Eyes Wyvern in my graveyard and didn't summon or set a monster this turn, I can banish him at the end of the turn and special summon one Red Eyes monster from my graveyard, and I choose **Red Eyes Darkness Metal Dragon (lv10, 2800/2400)**."

Great, his trump card's back. And next turn, he'll bring back the other Red Eyes with Black Stone's special ability. Just perfect.

 **Turn 8: Yuki's Turn, Galen 500, Yuki 2600**

"Good duel," Galen smiled, apparently thinking the duel's already over. "You know, if you want, I'll let you join my gang after I win the Sabaku district back from the Magicians."

"That might be a little early yet," I looked at my hand, "I equip Celtic Guardian with Black Pendant, raising his attack to 1900, and attack your Red Eyes Darkness Metal Dragon!"

"Why would you do that?" Felice asked, she's really not great at this game.

"When Black Pendant is sent from the field to the graveyard," Galen answered for me, "the opponent loses 500 life points. So I'll activate Threatening Roar, which forces you to skip battle phase this turn."

"I'll place one last card face-down and end my turn," I decided, curious what he could do now that he can't destroy my monster.

 **Turn 9: Galen's Turn, Galen 500, Yuki 2600**

"I summon Black Stone of Legend from my hand," Galen announced, "and let him go to bring **Red Eyes Black Dragon** onto my field! Next I play a magic card, Inferno Fire Blast. By sacrificing my Red Eyes Black Dragon's attack for this turn, I can deal you 2400 damage! And now that you only have 200 life points left, my Darkness Metal Dragon can wipe you out before your Black Pendant can take effect. Darkness Metal Dragon, attack!"

Frankly, I feel a little silly that he's announcing every attack like he's commanding the monster, while in reality, we're just playing with pieces of paper.

"I activate my spell card, Shrink, it cuts the attacking monster's attack by half," I added more for Felice's benefit than anything else.

The move decreased Galen's monster's attack to 1400, against my elf's 1900.

"Nice try, but I always have a back-up plan," Galen flipped over his last face-down card, "Waboku, negates all damage for this turn and protects my monster from harm!"

"Aren't you on your back-up, back-up, back-up plan now?" Felice commented sarcastically.

"Just in case, I'll use my Darkness Metal Dragon's effect to bring out **Hardened Armored Dragon** in defense mode just in case," Galen said, "you spell may have protected you this turn, but next turn, I can still attack and destroy you."

 **Turn 10: Yuki's Turn, Galen 500, Yuki 200**

"I don't think you'll have a next turn," I smirked. "I summon **Grandmaster of the Six Samurai (lv5, 2100/800)**.

"What can he do?" Felice asked, confused, "he's not powerful enough to destroy any of Galen's monsters!"

"I'm so glad I'm not dueling you instead," I said drily.

"When Celtic Guardian is sacrificed," Galen explained, looking dejected but not defeated, "his equip card is sent to the graveyard, dealing 500 damage."

* * *

"I can't believe you actually lost!" Our intruder burst out laughing, resuming her haughty façade now that the duel has ended. "Not the man you used to be, huh?" she then turned to me, "Look kid, we're the Magicians. If you want a duel, stop by sometime, I think I'll give you a chance. Galen knows where to find us." Felice retreated back into one of the numerous tunnels linking underground bomb shelters throughout the Satellite.

As soon as her back was turned, Felice stuck her tongue out and rubbed her jaw. It hurt her face to talk like that, that being her best impression of a smug jerk. Vincent _so_ owed her for this.

"So…" Galen broke the tentative silence between us, "are you going to go?"

"Duel them you mean?" I paused, "I don't think so."

I doubt leading a small Satellite mob would help my case, the Enforcers pretty much represent the most any Satellite group can achieve, and look what happened to them.

Plus, there's a fundamental difference between joining some Satellite gang to fight for a larger piece of a pathetically small pie thereby forcing everybody else to literally starve, and making a bigger pie, I'm much more inclined towards the latter right now, which wouldn't eat away at my conscience. I'm better than stealing from malnourished teenagers, I reminded myself amidst growing hunger pains.

I had had essentially the entire information of the human race at my fingertips for most of my life, it shouldn't be that hard making a living amongst people who's never finished grade school.

"I guess you don't want to go to the Facilities anymore," Galen said regrettably," you can have your tickets back." He handed me a stack of specially designed plastic ticket

I had vague recollections of these tickets. They are distributed monthly for those less than 16 years of age. At select government locations, they can be exchanged for food or water.

That's right, food OR water, or other necessities. Each ticket was good for 2 L of water or 1 lb of whatever foodstuffs the Sector had deemed sufficient for three meals. One ticket per person under sixteen years of age per day, just enough to survive.

Adults were expected to earn their keep mostly by piece work at the various Satellite plants, taking their meager earning to the same locations for exchanging into sustenance. Children were not allowed to work in those plants, so any kid wanting to earn an extra buck picked up trash from the towering mountains of landfill, and sold them on street corners wherever Sector Security were too lazy to patrol.

He gave me 7 of those plastic tickets, enough food for a week.

"What are you going to do for food?" I thought I'd double check just in case.

I'll see if I can sell anything, else I'll try to get myself arrested, probably," he smiled bitterly, "I already used what I had to set the whole thing up, would be a shame to waste the opportunity."

This body didn't have any of the tickets he was talking about, whether they were stolen, lost or simply used up, I didn't know. But I didn't like forcing him to starve, nor did I enjoy the thought of consuming less than half of my recommended daily calories for the next week.

"Can't we get the water anywhere else?" I asked, partly to keep the conversation going, partly because if we did have to walk an hour to get water like he mentioned, I'd probably be mugged twice before I got there.

As much as I was concerned for him, I had to admit my own welfare did take precedence.

Such was my desperation I was even willing to be reduced to unboiled, unfiltered tap water- hello salmonella.

It'll be at least easier to get water than food, I hope.

Incessant pollution over the past decades had drastically reduced the number of all living organisms except cockroaches, rats and humans (the human population did crash, but pollution was not to blame).

The only advantage in this case, is that there aren't much bugs roaming the Satellite as there otherwise would have been. It just wouldn't do to have our young motorcycle-riding protagonists desperately reaching down his back to kill a bedbug during a duel that would decide the fate of the world, or our attractive heroine take off her helmet, long red hair flowing in the wind, dotted with specks of lice.

Ugh, I should stop disgusting myself like this.

"Have you learned nothing in the Satellite?" The pink-haired kid asked sarcastically, "Things aren't just handed to you, if you want something, you have to work for it. Wait, you're not thinking of drink straight from the river are you?" He looked genuinely concerned.

"There's a river right beside the Satellite?" I knew I shouldn't have said that, that kind of ignorance would be hard to explain away, I just couldn't stop myself. "Is it closer? Safer?"

The teenager took a long look at me, but didn't ask any questions, for which I was grateful.

"What's wrong with the river?" I amended my question. Sure, that's a couple of steps below even tap water, but I'd still take it over 2 hours of walking a day to get water. As you can probably tell, I really don't like walking.

I don't think Japan had any serious indigenous parasites…

The water's polluted," Galen said simply.

I looked at him inquiringly. Charity drives often showed images of extremely contaminated water sources, and people drinking directly out of them regularly.

"The factories up north all drain into this river" Gavin explained in the same light tone, "and it's connected to the ocean, so most of the water is too salty anyways. There're some runoffs that doesn't have so much salt, but then there's the radioactive stuff. It'll kill you before jail kills me." He replied, cheery as always. "Longest I heard anybody living off of that stuff is five years."

I studied him mutely. He seemed to have taken the situation for granted, as the way of the world, no doubt exactly as Neo Domino had hoped.

"Is there anything else we can do?" I really didn't feel like being forced to go on a diet, but I don't think I could live with myself if a minor ended up rotting in jail because of me.

Not that poverty doesn't send people to prison even in a better world.

"I'm going to go pick through the newest shipments from Neo Domino one more time, I might even find duel runner parts!" He was far too accepting of this fate, "You can live off it if you're lucky."

"So there is at least some commercial activity," I paused, "how about I hire you to show me around." I took out 3 of those plastic tickets, hesitated, then added another one. I could survive on 3 for the week, not well, but I could still survive.

The teen in front of me kept his head high, even as his eyes repeatedly strayed to the small pieces of plastic in my hands. "I'll work for you," he assented, "but only if you defeat the Magicians for me."

For some reason, that brought me back to grade school, when favors like 'beating somebody up' were traded for snacks. No, I didn't go to a great school.

"Some other time," I replied carelessly.

I wasn't really interested in playing pretend with a bunch of kids who think they could actually control the Satellite. The best they could ever achieve is the 'Enforcer' old status, and that just doesn't seem very appealing.

I doubt fictional territory would help me escape the Satellite, I needed _real_ resources, human or capital.

The word capital gave me an idea, it wasn't the brightest idea I had ever came up with, but given this show's tendency to give fairly minor characters control over truly outrageous technology, it actually had a pretty good chance of success, much better than betting my chances of escaping the Satellite on somehow gaining control of an underpopulated district with negligible commercial activity.

Plus, anything was better than sitting here despairing about the future.

"Do you know anybody who's good at building stuff?" I asked, changing the subject completely, "Like _really_ good at building stuff, like electronics and stuff."

"Well, I know this one guy," The teenager replied, a little confused, "he can build _anything_."

"Are you sure? Not just a mechanic, but like an engineer too, who can design stuff." I stuttered a little, letting the ideas come to me as I spoke, first uncertainly, then with more confidence.

I came from a world filled with consumer electronics dedicated to entertaining the public, while this world devoted most of its ingenuity to enhancing the experience of a children's card game.

That is a huge market waiting to be filled. Under the right circumstances, you could make enough money to buy the entire Neo Domino City with opportunities like these.

Of course, I did not have the 'right circumstances', but it should be more than enough to buy my way out of this city, out of this country.

"He built a lot of duel disks," he obviously thought this was the most any engineer could do, "from just scraps." I wasn't sure what exactly that involved, but it sounded impressive.

"So let's go then!" I stood up. Even if this man wasn't able to design what I wanted, he might know somebody who can. I needed to get out, every minute I stayed in this dump pushed me a little closer to insanity,

He took a little longer to reply than was natural, my exhausted and nutrient deprived mind dismissed it as my imagination, "I can take you the roundabout way, it take a little more time but it'll be much safer. We might still run into some duel gangs on the way though."

The phrase 'duel gangs' brought a smile to my lips. Actually, I would have laughed till I was on the floor gasping for breaths if I hadn't correctly surmised that he had been, or wanted to be, part of a duel gang (lol). Then again, it's probably no more ridiculous than my idea of starting a corporation right here in the Satellite.

"I'll take my chances," I assured him, "let's just get out of here first."

* * *

 **A/N:** _Galen_ _had just joined your party, begin quest?_


	3. Oh the People You'll Meet

**Disclaimer** : I do not own YGO 5ds.

 **A/N** : This story features a lot of OCs, I wanted to show a more diverse side of the Satellite, considering the Enforcers were at the very top of the food chain so to speak Also there isn't nearly enough characters to fill out what I have planned.

* * *

Deep inside the heart of Old Domino City, beneath the reactor that led to Zero Reverse, lay hidden a stone mausoleum of infinite horrors, where the darkest souls of the Satellite, their corporeal forms tainted by the shadows, their minds manipulated by their malicious masters like puppets on a string, gathered to plan destruction and despair for ages to come.

Or, as Yuki would later call it, Dark Signers' basement head office.

With no plumbing, electricity, or a ventilation system despite the numerous levels of basements, you know they're possessed by something when they decided on the office location.

On the lowest level of this abyss of pure evil, was its heart and soul, the gathering place of the Dark Signers themselves, where Roman Goodwin had reigned for the past one and a half decades.

The silver-haired man stood in front of the long table now, deep in thought as his forcefully caressed the mark of the Spider on his arm, illuminated only by the brightness of a single flickering candle that had done more to emphasize tfhe darkness rather than bring light to these stone halls.

"What do you wish of me, My King?" Roman Goodwin asked loudly, though he knew there wasn't another soul within miles of the old reactor site. The shadows that enveloped him did not respond, nor did he expect any answers. Roman was never lucky enough to have the right answered handed to him, or know the right thing to do, his 'best course of actions' had always been based on flimsy reasoning and even flimsier willpower.

 _And he would shape the fate of this world,_ Roman chuckled despite himself at the thought, _the universe resting on the decisions of a man who had long fallen to the Shadows. This world is going to hell._

But more urgent matters occupied the forefront of his thoughts tonight. As the chief executor for the Netherworld monster, he was more attuned to its powers than the rest, and at noon today, he felt a distinct surge in magical energies within his demon lord.

It concerned him greatly.

The King of the Netherworld and the Crimson Dragon had always been two sides of the same coin, the rise of one is necessarily accompanied by the fall of the other. This shift in the power balance disrupts the precarious equilibrium so carefully maintained between light and dark, the Demon must not be allowed to strengthen any further lest the world falls completely to the Shadows.

The spiders he sent out had brought him no information yet. On the surface, Satellite toiled on, its rats scurried across as usual, safe in their anonymity.

The Shadows were cunning, and he might not be its sole servant, thus time was of the essence. Making up his mind, Roman Goodwin stepped out of the stone chambers, throwing open the door and letting the light from the hallway flood the room.

He stepped firmly over the bridge, standing over the amorphous pool of light underneath, bubbling dangerously with the rise in magical energies of the Netherworld Beast. He sidestepped the greedy clutches of a strand of such energy that wanted to take him before he completed his task.

He had given Rex enough time, now he has to speed things up.

Unbeknownst to the residents of the Satellite, the noose around their neck hang just a little bit tighter.

* * *

Our powerwalk through the charming moonlit Old Domino was fascinating, complete with half-demolished buildings, mountains of industrial waste from Neo Domino, and pothole-filled roads that were more pothole than road. That's why motorcycles were so popular despite being illegal, there's no way a car can last on these roads. No humans in sight though, a little disconcerting considering it was barely an hour after sundown.

It was exactly the way I envisioned a post-apocalyptic wasteland to look, if I ignore the fully-functional ultra-modern city just across the river.

I was getting tired of the scenery, and just starting have my attention drawn to my aching muscles when a group of 4 kids with duel disks blocked our way. Calling them kids probably isn't accurate age-wise, but their outfits just make them look so immature.

All four wore solid, ill-fitted suits that I've only ever seen in comedies and parades, in purple, red, blue and green respectively, complete with top hats and cane. I could have written a couple of essays on how this plays off the post-apocalyptic scene.

"Hiiya guys!" Felice waved at me, the white-haired teen was still dressed in the over-sized purple suit, smiling broadly.

"I'm glad you made it, I thought you'd chicken out again." Their leader stepped out from the pack, he wore a cheerful animated smile that would no doubt had drawn me in had I been a real 13 year-old.

"Vincent." Galen grunted. Vincent Foxwell, Galen had mentioned the man on our walk here (something I now recognize as deliberate), though he only goes by Vincent nowadays because his last name doesn't project the tough-guy image coveted in the Satellite. Galen had described Vincent to me simply as 'the ex-mobster that didn't make it', and warned me against his destructive tendencies. It seems that neither Galen's description nor the image Vincent is trying to portray tells the whole story.

Vincent was 29 years old and stood at 6'1, with bulging muscles, long red hair tied loosely into a ponytail and a red suit that clung to his body in a way it was clearly never designed to do. Physically, he was undoubtedly attractive, who am I kidding, they all are. He was only betrayed be his eyes, which practically glowed in the color of blood, with a depth I had never seen before. As though they internalized in all the atrocities he had ever seen in the Satellite and reflected it back to him every time he looked into a mirror.

"That's Cyril, and that small one's Teddy." Galen finished.

Cyril was a white-haired teenager with icy blue eyes, dressed in a suit that matched his eyes. I was proud of myself for not making a Smurf comment. I mean, I would have commented on it, but Vincent stood at a good 6'1 and probably weighed more than Galen and I put together, so it took everything I had to hold back my natural sarcasm.

Teddy did draw my one thing, he was shorter than I was, which made me like him instantly. He was maybe 12 years ago, dressed in a ridiculous green suit that could have fitted at least two of him inside, making him look like an upside down tree. Well, nobody's perfect. He also had the hair I want. It was brown, just brown! Dark brown hair in a buzz cut with large brown eyes. There were no spikes, no random bits shaved off, no unexplained (possibly worrying) discolorations. It's the way hair is supposed to look!

"I'm-" I began.

"Don't bother," Cyril cut me off, "We don't need to know every gutter duelist who passes through. If you're worth our time, prove it in a duel."

It's that duel thing again! Why do people keep on expecting me to prove myself with a children's card game?

"Vincent," my companion ignored the rest of the Magicians and greeted their leader only, I was relieved to feel the palpable animosity between them, at least this street runt wouldn't sell me out.

"Hi Galen," Their leader, I'm guessing Vincent, strode purposely over in a fashion oddly reminiscent of the pink-haired teen beside me, "good to see you again. I missed you, your dragon that is."

I snickered out loud at that, kids in the Satellite were not educated beyond twelve years old, if at all. As such, they were not exposed to the 'everything sounds dirty' phase of puberty in schools.

Galen gave me a strange look.

"You wouldn't understand," I dismissed lightly, "why are we here?"

Galen coughed.

"As I'm sure you already know, we've ran this show ever since your pal lost the district to us." Cyril stepped up to explain. "I'm guessing you're here to get it back?"

Ah, I can't say this meeting came entirely as a surprise. My companion had obviously led me to the unfriendly territory, in hopes of me dueling his adversaries.

I turned to look the boy diagonally in front of me, a smile playing on my lips; he avoided my gaze and hastily changed the subject.

"These clowns got lucky and found the suits in a dumpster two years ago, after the _real_ Magicians were defeated of course. And they've been trying to come up with dumb puns for their group ever since."

My smile died. I never considered the source of their clothing, or anything else they owned for that matter. Without sufficient income even for food, dumpster diving is a viable alternative. But that means… Where did _my_ clothes come from? Ew! I'm not exactly a germophobe, but I did remember Galen mentioning water was scarce, as were other commodities like soap and detergent. Ew, eww, eww!

"This is the girl I was telling you about," Felice nudged Vincent.

"Yuki Tono then, I'm glad you made it." Vincent waved the other kids aside, "We were here for Galen but since you beat him, I can give you a shot. I need somebody to test my deck anyways. You see I have a new addition to my deck as well, a second copy of Dark Magician!"

Galen paled, eyeing each of our opponents cautiously, trying to tell if it had been a bluff. Vincent smirked and took out his deck. Shuffling it with his eyes closed, the tall redhead picked two cards out of his deck and revealed them to us- a red and a blue Dark Magician stared down at us from their respective cards, two of the most powerful spellcasters in the game.

"You can leave if you want," my companion pushed me behind him protectively, "I'll catch up with you."

"But, but," I sputtered, pointing at the Magicians, then back at him, uttered confused. Wasn't that why he brought me here?

"You're not ready to duel them yet, not with the deck he has now. I'm sorry I dragged you into this. Just go, I'll handle this."

Their fascination with powerful monsters were getting a little annoying, after all, it's a duel between duelists, not monsters. I certainly wasn't going to derail my plans because of a few failed Houdini cosplayers.

"You do remember that I have no idea where we're going, right?" I pointed out drily, "or how to get back."

"If you really want to stay," Cyril piped up again, "then duel us, Battle City style. If you win, both you and Galen here are free to go."

"I don't see why not," I replied evenly just as the 16-year-old beside me said "in your dreams!"

"I insist," I added, locking my eyes on Vincent.

"What do you say Galen?" Vincent turned his gaze onto my companion, "are you going to bet your dragon on her duel?"

The teen beside me paused, but nodded in the end. "Yes, I do." He responded solemnly.

"Wait, what bet?" I asked a little concerned.

"These street vermin," Galen spat through clenched teeth, "have no respect for anybody's cards. They're still dueling by ancient Battle City rules."

I couldn't help bursting out laughing, _'ancient_ Battle City'. Oh my god.

"That's right, we duel by Battle City rules, the same rules written by Seto Kaiba himself at the dawn of duel monsters," Vincent spoke with deliberate force while I bit my lips to stop laughing at the sheer absurdity of situation. "Winner gets loser's rarest card. So in addition to this district, I'm putting up both of my Dark Magicians, for Galen's Red Eyes Darkness Metal Dragon and your rarest card. Galen, are you game? "

If they both have such powerful cards, I guess the powerful monsters from an earlier time wasn't too hard to find.

'Ancient Battle City' though, I mused a little sadly now that the absurdity had faded, not only was this not my world, this wasn't even the YGO world I was familiar with.

My rarest card, I looked half-heartedly through my deck, my deck responded with a half-assed selection. "Silent Swordsman Lv7," I announced, finding this card from my spare stack, "2600 attack and 1000 defense. He's my most powerful monster." I neglected to mention that he could only be special summoned with Silent Swordsman lv5, a card I did not possess.

"That's not so tough," Vincent replied, "With all the spell cards in his arsenal, my Dark Magician can take your little friend here no problem. Are you sure you want this little girl to fight your fights for you?"

"I trust her with my cards, because she'll wipe the floor with you," Galen defended me valiantly, then he turned to me, "two Dark Magicians would be a great addition to your deck."

Of course, that's just pre-duel talk to psych our opponents. Despite all his support cards, Dark Magician decks were harder to use than Synchro or later, XYZ and pendulum decks.

"I'll need a duel disk," I looked at the 'gang' that stood opposite me expectantly.

"Here, use mine," Felice handed me her duel disk and grinned, "Good luck. Vincent will crush you, but good luck anyways."

I nodded distractedly. I was busy wondering if the prevalent white-hair trait was a mutant form of albinism, and where my clothes actually came from

* * *

 **Turn 1, Vincent's Turn, Vincent 4000, Yuki 4000**

"Great then, let's duel!" Their leader took a couple of steps back, leaving enough room for the duel arena, and activating the holograms. "I'll start."

Four giant pillar of light appeared out of thin air, two behind me and two behind my opponent. The ground in front of us, roughly the size of a basketball court, was dimly illuminated by grids of light, presumably card grids. All the more impressive because I knew this field was controlled by only the duel disks on our arms. I marveled at the technology available in this world, then at how little of this technology was dedicated to improving the livelihood of the everyday people.

"I place one monster face down in defense mode," he began, "and two cards face down. That ends my turn."

A very typical, if cautious move.

 **Turn 2, Yuki's Turn, Vincent 4000, Yuki 4000**

"I play Mystical Space Typhoon," the spell generated a 2-meter tall tornado that flew towards his side of the field and destroy a facedown trap card, Call of the Haunted. "Next, I'll summon my **Axe Raider (1700/1000)** to the field, and use him to attack your face down monster."

His monster was revealed to be **Magician's Valkyria (1600/1800)**. I lost 100 LP, laid two cards down and ended my turn.

 **Turn 3, Vincent's Turn, Vincent 4000, Yuki 3900**

"Hah! I knew you were all talk." He was overly excited for that small victory. "And now, I activate my Trap, **Embodiment of Apophis (1600/1800)**."

"A trap monster!" I heard a gasp from Galen.

"That's right," Vincent's lackeys must have heard it too, "and that's not even his best card."

Hmm, Embodiment of Apophis is a decent card, but it was really only in style for a while, when the trap monster thing just started. These kids are essentially still dueling at Battle City level, this shouldn't be too hard, even with that collection of cards I now use as a deck.

"Now I let both of my monsters go, to summon my ultimate mage, **Dark Magician (2500/2300)**. Dark Magician, dark magic attack! Destroy his warrior!"

Having only Scapegoat and Chain Strike (activate at 2nd link or higher, 400 damage to opponent per link) on my field, I could not defend against the attack. My life points dropped to 3100.

"Now, I'll place another two cards face down and end my turn," He said proudly.

 **Turn 4, Yuki's Turn, Vincent 4000, Yuki 3100**

"Then I draw," I picked up a monster card, X-Saber Galahad (lv4, 1800/800), not bad, I think I'll save it. "I summon, **Constellar Pollux (lv4, 1700/600)** " This monster grants its owner one extra normal summon of Constellar monsters when it is normal summoned. Despite the excellent effect, it was the only Constellar monster I had in my deck.

"I activate a trap, Dust Tornado," Vincent spoke loudly. In more professional duels, there would be microphones, in this case, we must rely on our vocal cords. "I'll destroy the card on the left."

He pointed to Scapegoat.

"I activate Scapegoat," I replied, "and chain it with my Chain Strike, dealing 1200 damage." There were gasps all around, the redhead growled at the 2800 LP counter on his duel disk.

I was more used to 8000LP duels, so 1k doesn't seem like much.

"Next, I play Fissure," I held out the time-tested spell card, "which destroys the weakest monster you have on the field, in this case, your Dark Magician."

The ground seemed to open up, and a giant hand reached out to grab Dark Magician, dragging him into what looked like a fiery pit. Now that everything, aka the entire world, was in 3-D, the graphics looked authentic enough to be terrifying.

"Okay..." I took a deep breath to calm myself after the horrifying image that just played out before my eyes. What the hell was Kaiba thinking? "Now I'll have my warrior attack you directly." His life points dropped to 1100, the Magicians were beginning to look a little pale. I had a monster and three tokens on the field while he had none, it wasn't hard to do the math.

 **Turn 5, Vincent's Turn, Vincent 1100, Yuki 3100**

"So she's got a couple of tricks up her sleeve, you can still take her!" The green one, I mean Teddy, called out.

Thanks of eyesight undamaged by computer access and education, I could see my opponent very well even in the darkness. His lips pursed in a straight line as he drew his next card, and brightened up.

"First," He announced loudly, a habit from these unofficial duels, which had no microphones or sound amplification devices "I summon **Hannibal Necromancer (1400/200)** , in attack mode. So I can activate my trap, Torrential Tribute, which destroys all monsters on the field. Now that your field is clear, I play a magic card, Dark Magic Curtains! At the cost of half of my life points, I summon to the field, Dark Magician. Dark Magician, attack her directly!"

Finally, he uses a magic card. I distracted myself with random thoughts while gritting my teeth through the pain of the direct attack. There was no physical damage that I could find, yet I did feel the full impact of that attack as my life points dwindled down to 600 (from 3100), still a little higher than his 550, but only just.

He had only one monster on the field, with nothing in his spell and trap zone when he ended his turn, overly confident in his mage's abilities.

 **Turn 5, Vincent's Turn, Vincent 550, Yuki 600**

"I play, Megamorph!" I placed the spell card into its slot, "and equip it to your Dark Magician. When my life points are higher than yours, the equipped monster's attack is halved, so your magician's attack is decreased to 1250."

"No," He gasped, taking a step back as though he had been hit. There was really no need for such drama in card games.

"Yes!" Galen shouted behind me. I repeat, needless drama.

"And I summon **X-Saber Galahad (lv4, 1800/1000)** , and use it to attack your Dark Magician. He gains 300 attack points when attacking an opponent monster." Even if he didn't, it wouldn't have made any difference.

My monster charged his mage unhindered. Dark Magician turned and took one last longing look at his master as he disintegrated into the light that formed him.

That wasn't part of the hologram programming, was it?

* * *

"No!" That was the chorus from the circus Magicians.

"You won!" That was Galen rejoicing by rushing up, then skidding to a stop two steps away. He moved as though to hug me, then changed his mind and patted me awkwardly on the arm instead. "I mean, congratulations."

"You won." Vincent walked up, all the energy drained out of him. He riffled through his deck and handed me two Dark Magicians, "Please take good care of them. If you don't use these cards, find them good homes. We'll stay out of the Sabaku district from now on."

Honor among circus folk. I mean, duelists, right, duelists. I don't get it. There's five of them and two of us, if we were to secretly disappear forever, nobody has to know. And so, I was interested in asking a couple more questions.

"Where are you guys going?"

"I don't know," He kept his hand held out, "probably to the Gijutsu area to the north, nobody claimed that area yet, so we can lay low for a while. We'll stay out of any area that you claim."

"Now, when you say this area is mine," I couldn't resist the question, "What do you mean? What can I do with it? I mean, technically, it's all Sector property, right?"

I was never part of an official gang with territory, so the novel experience was at least entertaining.

"Well, umm, you can rob the people who live here I guess." Vincent stuttered, this obviously wasn't a question he'd been asked before, "but mostly we steal from Sector Security."

"Yeah, rob from the rich and give to the poor," Teddy chimed in, "Even if you get caught, they usually let you go if you beat them in a duel, I just think they don't want anybody to find out how much the Sector loses to us satellites."

"Make sure you do it on a Wednesday though," The purple-suited Felice added, "That's when they restock, so whatever you take would just be reported as wear-and-tear."

"No more than 50lbs per location though," the Smurf look-alike added, "Else they _really_ come after you."

"Looks like you guys have got this down to a science," I chuckled. It was a terrible world for these kids to resort to criminal activities just to survive, I was nonetheless amused by this in-depth analysis and optimization of the theft of Sector property. "I think I need people like that here."

"What do you mean?" The Smurf asked, suspicion dripping from his voice.

"What are you doing, Cyril?" Teddy whispered urgently, pulling on the tails of his blue suit in what I could only assume to be an attempt at being inconspicuous, "she was going to let us stay here. Do you _want_ to face Him?"

"Theodore." Felice said warningly, I apparently wasn't the only one who heard him.

"I think it's only fair that we hear what you have to say first," the Smurf named Cyril spoke for the group naturally; no less suspicious, if a little demoralized after his friend's reminder.

"Look," I scratched my head, grateful that anime people, even in 3-D, apparently didn't get dandruff. "I need people to watch over the area, and you need a place to stay, right? So why not?"

"There's not enough food," Vincent replied firmly, "security gets agitated if we take more than 200lb per week per district, no matter the location, so we never get enough to eat."

"With two hundred pounds of food per week?" He looked like he could eat a lot, but this was getting ridiculous.

"It's not just us, you nitwit!" Teddy retorted. "They don't feed anybody enough here, not even the kids. So we have to back a couple of the orphanages, with whatever we can get."

You _are_ the kids, I wanted to tell him. Youngest of the group, he couldn't have been more than fourteen.

"All the more reason to stay here," I said instead, "who's gonna take care of them after you're gone?"

"What do you want for it?" Cyril pressed.

"Depends on what you are willing to part with." I teased with a grin. These clowns had nothing except the shirt off their backs, what could I possibly want from them?

"We can't just abandon those kids" Vincent deadpanned, "we'll stay. Name your price."

"Hmm," I paused, "I'll let you know."

I had no idea what to expect from a duel gang(lol), or supposedly running a district underground (LOL), I didn't even know where I was.

"How much food do you want?" Cyril asked in all seriousness, the four teenagers looked at me intently.

"I don't know," I replied again, "let's see what I can manage tonight, then we'll talk."

"Why? What are you doing tonight?" Teddy asked curiously, obviously already warming up to me. That kid needs to learn to keep his guard up.

"I'm not sure," I told him honestly, "but I'm hoping for something productive." I thought it was a clever pun (because I'm actually going to produce things), none of them got it. "Vincent, here." I handed his Dark Magicians back to him, "you're gonna need these."

"Are you sure?" He brightened up instantly, almost tearing up, it's a little funny to see on somebody 6'1 and towering over me.

"Consider it part of your employment benefits." I joked.

"What's that?" The redhead asked while the two obviously smarter members of the group looked exasperated.

"We apologize for Vincent," Felice explained, "he was never at the top of his class, so employment was never on his radar."

I know she meant it as a joke, but I couldn't manage a smile. Local business were all but impossible to maintain in the Satellite, both gangs and Sector Security made sure of that. Slightly over half of the able-bodied adults were employed by Neo Domino factories, the rest survived however they could, if at all. I was reminded of the hyena guy as I pulled up the corners of my lips to show teeth.

We'll see if we can do something about that, I thought. I didn't want to promise anything until I was sure.

"We'll be off then, you kids be good." I wanted to catch this engineer before it's too late to visit.

"Will do boss," Vincent replied apparently in all seriousness. "Do you want me to give you a ride? Our duel runner just got fixed up."

He showed me inside the large warehouse they're living in, revealing what can best be described as post-modern minimalism meet steampunk. Notice I meant 'best' as in 'most generously' not 'most accurately'.

He pointed to a heap of scrap metal in a corner. Smart, hiding a motorcycle in metal parts.

I was within five feet of it before I realized the scrap metal I was looking at _was_ the duel runner. Unlike the flawless, world-class, mint-condition machines our protagonist was known to construct, this was what I would expect after a couple of crashes too many. I could leave this thing unlocked in any crime-ridden city in the (actual) modern world, and nobody would have the guts to ride away with it.

The only newish looking part was the engine, which was fastened, with what was either wires or large twist-ties, to the frame of a large bicycle. The front and rear forks were custom-adjusted to accommodate the uneven-sized wheels. Vincent later assured me that it was done on purpose to improve speed, though it wasn't a move that made this contraption look more reliable. Random holes were drilled into the frame to stabilize the two seats they had somehow installed onto this collection of parts. The handles, however, was the highlight of the machine, it was two plastic bottles held in place with duct tape.

"No," I said stiffly. "Never." Well, maybe not never, I don't know how long I would want to live in this world, this wouldn't be the worst way to go out. "Not yet," I corrected myself, "it's not my time."

Felice obviously got my joke and snickered quietly.

"Suit yourself," Vincent shrugged, "this baby may not be much to look at, but she runs like a dream."

And in a dream she would run. I mentally added, being smart enough to keep that comment to myself.

Again biding my new acquaintances farewell, I embarked on the much less death-inducing, though tiresome task of walking. To be productive, I reminded myself, so the produced products can be traded for food and clothing.

The Magicians stayed outside to watch us go.

* * *

"What the hell were you thinking Vincent?," Cyril opened the attack on their leader as soon as the visitors left, using very un-Smurf like language, " Just giving up our territory like that, and to that, that ignorant, conceited, barely-duel-literate, Enforcer-wannabe of the day who couldn't afford half a bottle of hair dye"

"We did lose the duel, Cyril," Felice answered for the redhead, "fair is fair. Vincent didn't give anything up, he lost the area to her; any of us would have given the situation."

"We'll win it back, right guys?" Teddy asked energetically, looking at the two white-haired teens with worried eyes, clearly sensing the tension building up.

"Speak for yourself, Ms. Holier-Than-Thou," Cyril completely ignored the youngest of their group, directing his comment instead at Felice, "the rest of us wouldn't have just handed the area over. Who knows what that kid going to do to this area, did you see how she just up and left? She couldn't care less."

"She did let us stay, that's a good sign," Felice said genially, "and Galen cares about this area as much as any of us, so if this new girl does something wrong, the rest of us will correct it together."

"That doesn't mean we should roll over and surrender," Cyril remained adamant and turned again to their leader, "I don't like her, Vincent, not one bit. She reminds me too much of Mr. _Satisfaction_ , and that just screams trouble."

"I agree," Vincent finally added his input to the argument, mindlessly pulling on his own ponytail, "I don't trust a random girl with the Sabaku district either, but this might be for the best. I told Felice to look for Galen," the redhead avoided looking at his friends in the eyes, "I didn't tell you that I planned on losing the area to him."

"You what? Are you out of your freaking mind," Cyril demanded loudly, looking over his shoulder to make sure the party of two was well out of earshot.

"Let me finish," Vincent continued patiently, "Domino City is cracking down on all duel gangs again. To prepare for some big tournament they're having, some Cup or other."

"I wish I could enter," Cyril murmured dreamily, temporarily distracted. He barely heard it himself.

"So they're going to round up some of the leaders of duel gangs in the Satellite, in case we're any trouble," Vincent didn't, or acted like he didn't, hear Cyril's words, "the river is a high-risk area, so Ara's Mermail gang is thinking of moving onto land too. Then there's _Him_ , I heard He's been planning something big since They broke up, and it's almost ready. Whatever it is, it's bound to rile up Security again."

The three other members of the Magicians listened wide-eyed to their leader.

"A lot of things are happening at once, and it just makes sense to retreat from the foreground for a while. I've set things up with the orphanages, and we can stay underground for now, let the situation cool down."

"I knew you didn't really lose the duel!" Teddy cheered. Had our other-dimension visitor been present, she would have marveled at what Teddy chose to focus on.

"I'm afraid that was real," Vincent pulled a little harder on his ponytail, "I had decided to use a back-up deck, I guess that backfired, somewhat. I did plan on losing, so it worked out."

"Then we're just going to watch when Domino ships her off to the Facilities?" Felice sounded a little louder than she intended.

"We'll see. If that's what happens, well, her loss," Cyril said dismissively. "It's not like she'll be any good for anybody here."

"We'll do what we can to prevent it." Vincent assured Felice, "for now, let's humor her and let things play out."

* * *

 **A/N:**

I debated how I wanted to write the duels. I decided if a card effect isn't used, it wouldn't be written down. If it is used, it would be explained somehow through dialog or thought bubbles. (Vs writing all card effects in brackets like I planned).

Not sure if I was being obvious enough, 'He' referred to Yusei, Mr. Satisfaction referred to Kalin and 'Them' referred to the Enforcers.

I thought I would have a little fun with how other people in the Satellite saw the Enforcers


	4. Corporate Planning

**Disclaimer** : I do not own YGO 5ds.

 **A/N:**

Satellite refers to the location

satellite(s) refers to its residents

The chapter title is not a pun or analogy, this chapter really is about corporate planning, whatever little that's still possible inside the Satellite. If you don't like the business side of things, feel free to skip this chapter.

* * *

"Do you mean what you said?" Galen suddenly broke the silence. "Are you really going to let them stay?" He searched my face, careful to avoid mentioning the cause of our meeting with the Magicians.

"Sure," I nodded. I know that he lost the area to them (whatever that means), so resentment was natural, but I needed him to work through his petty rivalry so they could work together to get me out of the Satellite. "I know you guys had a history," I began. I mean, I was going to help them out after I get out of here, really,

"They're fine," Galen said a little too quickly. He hesitated, and continued with more sincerity "they still send the same amount of food to the orphanages after they took over, so I guess I'm okay with them. I still don't like them though."

"And you don't have to," I assured him, trying to put a smile on my lips, "we're not going to like everybody we meet in life, and that's okay."

He nodded slowly and sank into deep thought for the duration of our journey. These internet gems (note sarcasm here) sounded very deep if you've never heard anything like it before, which he wouldn't have because he didn't have internet or a computer.

...

"Here we are," he finally said, after over an hour of trudging through broken roads and rubble. If I had known it was going to be this long, I would have taken my chance with Vincent's scrap metal collection. He picked his way through what I would have assumed to be landfill. Excellent hideout, if you don't mind the smell, the bacteria, the trash, and whatever is flowing out from the piles of trash. I followed carefully, praying that I would not cut myself and die of tetanus.

"Can I help you?" A black-haired teenager stepped out from a tunnel underneath the piles of trash.

I examined him closely. Anti-gravity crab-shaped hair, check; short blue leatherish jacket, check; adorable blue eyes even though you'd think the protagonist would be Japanese given that this is a Japanese anime, check. Was this the technological expert we were looking for? I looked back at Galen inquiringly.

Galen grunted in annoyance, "No you can't, I was hoping to miss you. Everybody hopes they miss you when they come here. I'm looking for Nervin." Apparently not.

"Um, hi," I greeted the protagonist with a smile, debating whether to turn around immediately and leave, lest I attract unwanted attention from Rex Goodwin for having any connections with his precious little Signer, and thus be locked up for life. On the other hand, I wasn't sure how many people in the Satellite can build what I want, given its general abandoned state for the last 17 (16? 15?) years.

"I'm Yusei Fudo," the teenager introduced himself a little defensively, obviously not unfamiliar with hostility from random strangers.

"I'm None-of-Your-Business," Galen replied, I laughed awkwardly, the pink-haired teenager isn't usually like this.

"Nice to meet you," I grinned, trying to offset the hostility radiating off of Galen, "you're pretty well-known around here."

"So's salmonella," Galen interrupted before Yusei had a chance to respond to my compliment and pushed past us, storming inside.

I can't really blame him. I mean,the rise of the Enforcers looks very different from the point of view of a normal satellite. Two years ago, a particularly vicious duel gang conquered all other duel gangs, then tried to destroy everybody's duel disks and take down Sector Security. Thankfully, they were eventually defeated. All the duel gangs they defeated resurfaced with a vigor, while tension between the Sector and satellites were at an all-time high. Understandably, to the vast majority of the Satellite that didn't know them personally, the Enforcers were hardly popular.

"Most people still can't get over what the Enforcers did," Yusei explained candidly, "I'm afraid we didn't leave the Satellite much except chaos and tightened security."

"And how long ago what that?" I asked, trying to sound casual and trying to establish a definite timeline.

"It'll be 19 months next Wednesday," Yusei replied as he went back in, leaving the door open for me to follow. I swear I only followed him because I know him from the anime and he's probably not going to kill me, because this looked exactly like the sort of place people got killed in.

Aside from the physical limitations of this residence, its electronics were indeed quite impressive for the Satellite. I saw a computer, a television, a radio, even an obviously self-made heater. That gave me hope.

"Nervin's still at work, he should be back soon," Yusei informed us, sitting down at a surprisingly comfortable-looking sofa. More surprising because of its existence than anything else.

I looked over to see his half-finished duel runner leaning against the wall, opened my mouth, closed it, and couldn't help opening it again like a dying fish.

Galen cast me a curious look.

"Do you just leave it there?" I finally asked after fighting through my initial speechlessness.

"Nobody's ratted me out yet," Yusei shrugged, filled with a confidence in humanity that I simply did not possess, even before I got stuck in a place where starvation is the norm rather than the exception. "Any friend of Nervin's is a friend of mine."

"Yet! Nobody's ratted you out yet!" I couldn't keep the exasperation out of my voice. "And hasn't anybody told you about the whole 'friend of a friend' thing?"

The ex-Enforcer looked at me uncomprehendingly. "Are you going to rat me out of Security?" He asked directly.

"No," I admitted, refusing to be defeated, "But that's not the point."

"What are you guys doing here? Maybe I can give you a hand." Yusei offered, completely changing the subject.

"We don't want your help." Galen answered for me.

I smiled apologetically at Yusei but was secretly relieved. Though the protagonist of this series was probably better at literally everything than literally anybody else (not using literally in a figurative sense here), I was willing to settle for a lower quality if that meant not going to jail.

"I'll see if Nervin's back," Yusei nodded good-naturedly., passing into one of the tunnels and leaving us with his duel runner. I know he can probably duel us and win it back, but what if we refused to duel him? Actually, what happens when people just comes in and steals stuff when nobody's home? Though I guess that's more of a general problem for everybody who lives in tunnels and not have doors or privacy or security.

"Hi Galen," a young man in almost formal clothing walked in from the outside, interrupting my runaway thoughts. "What do you need this time?"

"Good to see you again," Galen nodded, "my friend is looking for you."

"Hi," I inspected the man in front of me, holding out my hand. He was by far the oldest person I've met so far, maybe late twenties. He was almost smartly dressed, in a shirt, sweater vest, tie and glasses, all of which were difficult to come by in an abandoned city. The laptop in his hand didn't look standard-issue either. I don't love the spider-shaped man-bun thing though, nor the blue-hair/green vest color scheme, but I've come to realize aesthetics aren't the first priority in the Satellite.

"You can call me Nervin," He shook my hand quickly and didn't bother asking for my name, "What can I do for you?"

He waved his hands in the general direction of the sofas and sat down in front of the computer desk.

"I'm Yuki, Yuki Tono," I smiled my best 'I'm not trapped in a post-apocalyptic city and secretly dying inside' smile while carefully sitting back down in the surprisingly-new couch. "I was wondering if you could build something like a portable clip-on radio, a radio that you can wear on your ears."

Electronic personal entertainment unrelated to dueling is virtually uncharted territory in this world, so while this is not a great product idea, it should be good enough. It's dangerous to have great ideas in the Satellite.

"That it?" Galen complained, " _That's_ what you dragged me all the way here for?"

I wanted to start small. In case this guy sells the idea behind my back, or some Domino suit comes and forces the idea out of my hands.

"I want to set up a small plant here in the Satellite," I continued as though uninterrupted, "to produce and distribute these clip-on radios. I think there's a real gap in personal entertainment right now." That's like saying the Satellite roads were 'slightly used'.

"There aren't any private factories here for a reason," Nervin answered pessimistically, glossing over all the conditions that created the hostile environment, "you really think your business will stand out from the crowd?"

"Factories in Satellites can't compete with the equipment, infrastructure and educated workforce the City, but those disadvantages can be compensated with a unique product. I'm presuming clip-on radios _are_ novel even in Domino City?" I was just winging it now, I hadn't been prepared for this many questions over a purchase order (which I was going to put on Galen's tab).

"How long do you think before the place becomes profitable?" Nervin asked, showing the first sign of genuine interest in the idea.

"If you can design something made solely from trash we find in the Satellite, a week tops," I answered confidently, "the idea is to first sell to Sector Security." I smirked when I saw their eyes widen, then quickly hid the smile, "they go on patrol all day with very little to do (mostly because they're responsible for very little in the Satellite, and mostly the above-ground population), and since there's no regulation against it, I imagine a little bit of entertainment would be welcomed."

Yep, the idea is to corrupt our city's finest.

"That's actually a really good idea," I was a little insulted at Nervin's surprise and did my best to hide it.

"Would you care to join me?" I offered. I probably needed an engineer of some sort for a factory, the most assembling I've ever done was Ikea furniture. Plus, if he did, I could pay him in shares rather than cash (which I didn't have).

"No," Nervin turned me down flatly, obviously surprised. Sensing the harshness of his own tone, he amended, "I, I'm currently... I want to help somebody who can bring hope to the Satellite, someone who can change this place for the better. Your idea sounds great, but I'm afraid it just doesn't measure up."

...

There're many ways to improve the situation in the Satellite, most of them weren't even expensive or time-consuming, they just required better perspective than what satellite residents, who weren't educated past grade school, possessed.

An idea struck me suddenly and leeched onto me. It wasn't part of my optimized strategy for getting out of Satellite, nor would it be safe or profitable. But by Ra (Is Ra still a thing in this world?) I wanted to do it. I wanted to do it to remind myself where I was from, that I wasn't just another satellite with a good idea, that there can be a better world, that even this trash-heap of a town wasn't permanent.

"I was thinking," I said uncertainly, critically assessing the idea for the first time, "if we could collect water from the air."

That got both their attention. Centuries after the Industrial Revolution, water again became a valuable commodity in the Satellite. Though tap water of questionable quality was available from the factories, the factories themselves are located on the outskirts of Satellite, the most crime-ridden areas due to their proximity to Neo Dominos. Getting water was not only exhausting, but also dangerous. All because Goodwin didn't want to shell out for the pipes after the previous water system was severely damaged by Zero Reverse.

"All we need is a modified dehumidifier." I continued slowly. The idea is hardly novel, the Genius machine already exists in my reality, if not yet popularized.

Galen stared at me, wide-eyed, open-mouthed. I poked him before he began to drool.

Nervin, on the other hand, watched me like a hawk. Even when Galen frantically tried to wipe non-existent drool (which I assured him was there) off his face, the older man didn't crack a smile.

"You want to create water." He stated each word with a finality, Galen grabbed my wrist in the tension.

"Collect water," I insisted on setting the record straight, creating water sounded so much more impressive, and thus much more likely to attract unwanted attention.

"Do you have any particular specifications?" He recovered his composure and asked calmly, typing rapidly on his laptop.

"No, as long as we can make it from things readily available in the Satellite. And I'll need several copies of the blueprints of course, for the generator too."

"The blueprints cost extra," he replied without looking up.

"That's fine," I nodded.

"Just out of curiosity," Nervin paused, his eyes still trained on the screen of his laptop, "what do you want to do with the blueprints?"

"We're going to give it to everybody," I said airily, as though that was the most natural thing to do. In the past minutes that the idea came to me, I had debated making a business out of it, but to sell humidity, when most people have to labor incessantly for water, that's a level of low even I wouldn't sink into.

Nervin froze. The rhythmic clicking of keys stopped for half a minute. I looked on cautiously as he straightened up and shut off the lid on his laptop for the first time. He studied me from under his glasses till I shifted uncomfortably on the sofa. Nervin pinched the ridge of his nose, then finally demanded forcefully, "Do you have any idea what you're doing? What you're getting yourself into? What you're getting all of us into?"

His disbelief fueled an anger inside me that I managed to bottle up thus far.

Rex Goodwin were keeping these people in the Satellite like farm animals, raised for maximum population to feed the immortals. The rest of the country treated their citizens in the slums like oil in my reality- use as much as was necessary to maximize profits, neglect all moral consequences, and hope that they don't run out. The standards of governance had sunk to a new low.

"You mean the City wouldn't be happy about losing a way to control the Satellite? Tokyo may want my head on a stick if the idea spreads? Heck even the people I'm trying to help can easily be turned against me?" I stated each question more quietly than the last, my anger magically cooled with each question. He had the good graces to look abashed at the last question.

"Yes," I inclined my head just a tiny bit. "I think so. So I have to do this now, before I start having second thoughts, before I get scared off, before I listen to everybody around me and think of access to water as a privilege rather than a right." I'm not doing this for them, I'm doing this for me. To prove that I was still human, I was still humane.

"It's been this way since before there was Satellite," Nervin commented drily.

"And it would be this way long after the Satellite disappears, "I replied solemnly, "Unless something is done about it. Join me," I offered again hopefully.

"Why us?" Nervin questioned.

"If someone has to do it, why _not_ us?"

"And you think you can do it?" He questioned, "How?"

"This _is_ just a temporary glitch in civilization that'll be fixed soon. So if somebody can do it, why not _us_?" I shrugged. With limited resources and Domino government hovering in the backdrop, the odds really weren't in my favor.

"Why?"

 _Why_? I paused. I couldn't explain to him my despair of being trapped in this world, or my indifference to continue living inside it should it stay the same.

Japan, well, what's left of the island of Japan after two more world wars, was still one of the most advanced civilizations in the world, with a population of roughly 10 million left, and 9 of them lived far beneath what my civilization had considered the poverty line. These numbers were about the global average. Such widespread poverty being taken for granted just reminds me that there are no better havens to which I could escape; ruined slums were the norm rather than the exception. Why else would everybody in the Satellite try to escape to the forbidden Domino City, rather than literally any other city in the world?

"...It's something to do." I said finally. It's something worth doing.

Nervin remained silent for a long time. His eyes were trained on me, but seemed to focus on something much further in the distance.

"I don't know if you'll regret doing this," I added after some thought, "but I know you'll regret it if you don't."

Part of my felt guilty, for tempting a complete stranger into my very-possibly-temporary vendetta, which may lead to a very permanent imprisonment. That part didn't stand a chance against the rest of me. I had already said too much, if Nervin doesn't join me, there's no reason to think he wouldn't turn on me as soon as I left. I wasn't aware of any policy against private manufacturers in the Satellite, but numerous official mandates had, inadvertently or otherwise, kept profit-generating activities to a minimum.

"We all need something to do," Nervin said finally, his eyes focused on me again, "don't we?"

I secretly breathed a sigh of relief, then shook Galen's hand off my wrist in pain, waiting for the colors to return to my fingers.

Galen had been unnaturally quiet since he heard my plans, now he finally reacted, "so we're going to give everybody water?" He asked dreamily.

"I'm afraid not everybody," I feared severe retaliation from Domino City if I controlled the water supply, even of just the Satellite. Ideally, the people of the Satellite would individually have access to a cheap, practical water-collection machine that would increase their water supply.

"But we will sure as hell try," Nervin promised, a genuine smile on his lips.

Galen looked like he just saw Disneyland for the first time, or porn. Whichever.

I leaned back, relaxing for the first time since a couple of hours ago (Oh god, had it only been a couple of hours?), and probably for the last time in the foreseeable future.

"What are you waiting for, let's go, let's go, let's go!" Galen was jumping up and down as Nervin went through the various piles of... stuff, in the subway platform-turned living room.

"I need to write a letter saying goodbye" Nervin responded, a little somber.

"Why?" Galen asked in surprise, "we don't live far, you can still come back!"

"I hope to avoid involving them unnecessarily," Nervin responded, "the City can be, sensitive to these things'."

"So you're just, leaving?" Galen looked horrified. He was too young to have known loss.

"It's for the best." Nervin deadpanned, and refused to say more. As I later found out, the City generally paid no attention to the common satellite, but seeing as Yusei was one of the Enforcers, extra scrutiny is applied whenever possible.

"The same goes for you, Galen, you can still back out now." I added. I was unfamiliar with the workings of Domino City government, but since Nervin the native thought it was dangerous, I chose to proceed more cautiously.

"And miss the fun? Forget it! Count me in! It'll be like a secret mission nobody knows about. Galen Garfield, radio salesman by day, water master by night." He didn't look half as optimistic as his words, though the resolve was no less obvious. "Com'on Nerv, let's _go_ already."

Ignoring Galen's protests, Nervin placed a hand on the teen's head to hold him down, "Pack up the stuff over there, we need raw materials to construct the designs."

"Oh yeah," Galen dialed his energy back down, "you do that. We don't have a lot of stuff. Or anywhere for you to stay yet."

"We'll find something," I wasn't fazed, half the houses I saw were abandoned.

"There're a couple of pre-war places we can crash at," Nervin offered.

"I don't like those buildings," Galen complained, "They gave me the creeps."

I remained silent, trying not to doze off, and hoping my stomach wouldn't suddenly announce the hunger pangs that were just starting to come back.

* * *

 **A/N:** _Nervin left Party-Yusei; Nervin joined your party. Continue quest?_

The Genius machines are a real thing and collect usable water from the atmosphere. I'm more skeptical of its reliability in an area with low humidity, but near the ocean, it should work great. *coughCaliforniacough*

And I could never understand why people in the Satellite insisted on going to Domino. You're on an island, just take the boat and go literally anywhere. So I had to assume the rest of the world was at least as messed up as Domino City.


	5. Street Gangs

**Disclaimer** : I do not own YGO 5ds.

 **A/N:** When the details of a card is included, it would be ( _in brackets and italic)_ , more detailed information about decks are separated by …, so you can skip those if you like. They're more for reference than anything else.

And how do I put chapter name in quotations? The name of this chapter was supposed to be "Street Gangs"

* * *

"This is not going to work," I decided after two minutes of trying (and failing) to haul an over-packed bag up the stairs, "Isn't there any type of transportation we could use?"

"It's almost 10pm, vehicles attracts too much attention this late at night," Nervin informed me patiently, as though talking to a child (which he technically was, but I'm ignoring that), "even this is risky."

"I can duel us out!" Galen exclaimed, "And even if I can't, Yuki can do it!"

Nervin looked to me to confirm.

"Well, I definitely can't walk home carrying this," Walking or card games, it took me a split second to decide, "And I'd like to get home before dawn."

"It's your choice," Nervin relented and miraculously dug out, from under the trash, several familiar-looking metal contraptions, which he proceeded to assemble into an adult-sized tricycle. The non-electric kind. I've only seen adult tricycles once before in a farmer's market, and immediately googled it to confirm their existence. I honestly didn't think I'd see another one so soon, or ever.

"Cool!" Galen was apparently _not_ being sarcastic.

"I'm afraid you guys would still have to walk, it won't be able to hold three people" Nervin said apologetically, "the City keeps a pretty tight control over motorized vehicles, and it just isn't worth the risk."

"That's fine," I added setting up Uber in the Satellite to my to-do list.

...

"Hey!" We didn't get more than half a mile before I heard a loud shout came out of nowhere. I cringed and grabbed Galen despite myself. A manhole cover was lifted, and several people crawled out. I cringed further away, they stank. In hindsight, they probably came from a bomb shelter, a step up from our humble abode because they at least had a door (man-hole cover).

"You're not going anywhere with that," their leader said, I tried to look as polite as I could while holding my breath. "Leave your bike and we'll let you go."

"I can take them," Galen stepped up proudly. I patted him on the back for encouragement. Even though he lost to me, he had won a district in the past, so he was reasonably reliable against these night-walkers. I was certainly glad to avoid these people for the sake of my respiratory system.

"Here, use this," Nervin offered his duel disk. "I never use it anyways."

"Awesome!" Galen jumped in excitement, "my own duel disk again. Finally!"

"Hehehe, you're sending the kid to duel?" The leader of the Sewage Squad (I'm calling them that for now) sniggered darkly. "Too afraid to face us yourself?"

"Actually, yes." Nervin replied unabashed, "there's no way I'd win."

Finally, a man with his priorities straight, I wanted to dance in merriment. Learning technology to improve the livelihood of the general populace is much more important than a trading card game.

"I guess I'll duel the kid," said the squadron leader after some confused mumbling.

"Great!" Galen replied. "You guys just watch, I'm gonna kick his butt!"

Nervin looked so relieved I had to turn away so he didn't see my smile.

"Battle City rules?" Galen asked.

"No." His opponent replied, "Winner take all." That, I learned, meant betting away all your cards on the duel.

I heard gasps from his gang, apparently, that was rare even for these street duels. Must have thought we were easy pickings.

More nightwalkers began creeping up, surrounding us in a loose circle.

"Oh, this doesn't look good." Nervin looked petrified, "this doesn't look good at all."

"It's not that big a deal," I shrugged. If the Magicians could handle a district, I had little fear for these people who can't even get their own territory. "It does look like there's going to be a lot of them though, do you have a deck?"

"Huh?" Nervin was startled out of his trembling, "yeah, of course. Here, take it."

"Take it?" I blinked, "no, I want you to use it. I'll have to duel, but you might be forced into a duel as well." As with any attack, they'd obviously start with the weak. In this case, weak in dueling skills, a fact I still can't completely wrap my head around.

"I can't! I'll lose everything." Nervin insisted.

"You'll lose everything anyways," A larger group walked out of the abandoned looking apartment off the side of the road. There were ten of them in all, looking more like a large family than a street duel gang (*snigger*).

There was various oohing and aahing from the crowd.

"Give me your cards," I told Nervin, he complied without question.

As quickly as I could, I went through his deck. He actually had quite a decent deck, by 5Ds standards, even with 3 synchro monsters. He must have put an unhealthy amount of time and money into this, I don't understand why he doesn't play.

"I have more over there," Nervin dragged me by the arm to our duffle bags and opened the top one. At the very top was a metal tin, which he opened to reveal stacks of duel monster cards.

Well, if there was any chance they'd let us leave before, that's certainly out of the question now. We'd be lucky if we can get out after winning the duels. So we'd better win.

…

I added generic spells and traps, the advantage, or disadvantage if you like, of a gadget deck is that it doesn't have a lot of support spells or traps (not good ones anyways), so it's quick to put together. I was also more familiar with this build, so the whole thing took no more than five minutes. It's not a great deck by any means, but it was decent enough that even Nervin could at least take on Gavin or the Magicians, and that's really all I expect of him.

I wanted to adjust my deck also. I saw quite a few good cards but I didn't have time, the crowd was closing in, adjusting my deck now would just throw it off balance.

"Duel now or surrender," the newest gang to show up cornered us, "it's all the same in the end."

I just noticed the surrounding crowd had gotten a lot quieter.

"The Bringer of Chaos!" Nervin gasped, I think I heard that being said earlier, but didn't pay attention.

"What is that?" I asked, "Like a card or something?"

Wasn't the fusion of three god card called the Bringer of Light? Maybe?

"No." The leader of the pack stepped up, "I am Chaos."

'Wow' was the only thing I could think. This guy was easily the largest man I've met so far, considering Vincent was 6'3 and looked like a body builder, that's saying something. Even his biceps towered over me by at least half a foot. Even by anime standards this can't be natural. Steroids, I decided, from all the pollution in Satellite food and water (though he later insisted I was wrong). He had purple hair in a taper cut (a normal hair style!), and dark blue eyes that looked like it could blend into the darkness of the night.

"Nice to meet you," I hesitated but didn't hold out a hand; if he so much as have a muscle spasm, my hand would be crushed. "Since there're so many of you, what would you say to a tag duel?"

"Tag duel?" Chaos repeated, "I think that would be acceptable."

"Tag duel?!" Nervin repeated, "Are you out of your mind?"

"Think about it this way," I grabbed him aside and whispered quickly, "You're gonna have to duel tonight, so this way, if you mess up, I can hopefully carry you."

Nervin gulped loudly, then nodded.

"Only one person from each group I'm afraid," I looked through the gathering crowd, "So we can get through everybody."

"Pretty sure of yourself, eh kiddo?" I recognized the owner of that voice amongst the second group that showed up, "first come first serve, so I think I have the chance to do the honors. I think we can finish this duel before the other one."

"Suit yourself, Blizzard" Chaos spoke. He had some authority within these crowds and the protests died down.

"All-in?" The man named Blizzard said more than asked.

"What else?" I flashed a quick smile. "All duels tonight will be all-in." It's not like I had another choice, if we lost, they'd take everything anyways.

I snuck a peek at Galen's duel, his life points stood at 3400 while his opponent's had dropped to 1200 LP. The pink-haired kid was maybe half-concentrating on his own duel, glancing over to our side whenever he has a chance.

* * *

"It's time to duel!" I put the duel disk Nervin provided onto my wrist, and stood still facing the two older men. The three men spread out to appropriate distances, then activated their duel disks also. Half of the crowds drawn by Galen's duel dispersed to our side, with murmurs of Chaos' past conquests

 **Turn 1: Blizzard's Turn, Blizzard/Chaos 4000, Nervin/Yuki 4000**

"I'll start." Blizzard picked a card out of his hand, "I place one card face-down, and summon **The Six Samurai - Zanji (lv4, 1800/1100)** In attack mode. And I think that's it for my turn."

I looked a little grim, a Six Samurai deck would not be good news right now.

 **Turn 2: Nervin's Turn, Blizzard/Chaos 4000, Nervin/Yuki 4000**

"Yuki!" Nervin said, panicking. "What do I do? What do I do? Tell me what to do!"

"Oh yeah, about that." I grinned, "I lied."

"What? You said you'd carry me!" Nervin protested, anxiety all but seeping out of him.

"I told you, I lied." I replied matter-of-factly. "I saw your deck and I believe you have a good chance. So play well, or else we'll lose."

"Yuki!" Nervin looked like he was about to have a nervous breakdown.

"Do you trust me?" I looked him in the eyes, Nervin nodded reluctantly, "Then duel. You can win this. You might not, but your chances are good enough to warrant a fight, so that's what you need to do."

Truth is, I couldn't care less about the duel, I mean, if we lose, we lose a number of children's trading cards. I'm more concerned about any legal restrictions on the company we're gonna start, and how to avoid any scrutiny from Goodwin. If I can use this game to help Nervin become more confident, it's probably the only good thing that can come out of this card game in the middle of the night.

"So I summon **Machina Gearframe (1800/800),** " Nervin said shakily.

I waited, and waited, and got impatient about 3 seconds later. "And?" I prompted. Okay, I'm not known for patience.

"And what?" Nervin asked.

"And Machina Gearframe is an effect monster." I reminded him.

"Right! I can bring one Machina Fortress into my hand!" Nervin exclaimed excited. "So I discard Red Gadget (Lv4) and Yellow Gadget (lv4) to special summon **Machina Fortress (lv8, 2500/2200)** , in attack mode!" Nervin's volume had reached that appropriate for a street duel, "in attack mode!"

Machina Fortress could have counted in its own 8-star special summon requirement, but I decided against raining on his parade.

"Now I can attack. Machina Fortress, destroy his warrior! Electric Pulse Destruction." He apparently knew the name of the attacks.

The armored knight was duly defeated.

"Now Machina Gearframe, attack his life points directly."

In this tagged duels, life point was shared between the two duelists on the same side, with a total of 4000. So their collectively LP dropped to 3300, then 1500.

I noticed Blizzard beginning to sweat, and Chaos gritting his teeth so that a vein popped out of his forehead.

"And I'm not done yet! I activate Machina Gearframe's second special effect and equip him to Machina Fortress! This way, the next time Machina Fortress would be destroyed, it would be protected by Machina Gearframe!" Nervin swiped his left arm dramatically, "I lay one card face-down and end my turn!"

"Nervin, are you okay? You look a little... high?" Maybe this wasn't a good idea.

"Don't be ridiculous, I'm only high with success!" Nervin assured me, which really wasn't very reassuring.

Chortles and guffaws rose out of the onlookers, previously silenced by our unexpected success.

 **Turn 3: Chaos's Turn, Blizzard/Chaos 1500, Nervin/Yuki 4000**

"That was a good turn," Chaos agreed. "But now, I play Heavy Storm, to destroy all magic and trap cards on the field."

The card Nervin had on the field? Mirror Force.

"Well, at least my monsters are safe. Wait, what happened to Machina Gearframe?" Nervin stared, horrified at having only one sole monster left on the field, "I never should have equipped that card! I told you I'm can't play, I'm not good enough!" I ignored him.

"Now, I play Foolish Burial, to discard one card from my deck to my graveyard, and I choose to discard, Summoner Nova (light, 1400/1200)."

"F*ck" I mouthed. Six-Samurai Zanji was a dark monster, and when the guy's name is Chaos, it's really not hard to figure out what he's trying to do.

"I banish both Six-Samurai Zanji and Summoner Nova from my graveyard, to summon **Black Luster Soldier - Envoy of the Beginning (3000/2500** ). Next, I summon **Envoy of Chaos (lv4, 1500/0)**. Black Luster Soldier, attack his heap of metal!"

At the first attack, Black Luster Solder destroyed Machina Fortress and 500 of our LP, bringing us down to 3500 LP.

"I'm not done yet," Chaos laughed, "My monster has a special ability. You see, when my soldier destroys a monster the first time, it can attack again."

"We're gonna lose!" Nervin pointed shakily at the monster clad in blue armor. "I don't have anything close to that kind of power! My field's empty, I have nothing else to use! We're gonna lose! I knew my cards weren't good enough! I never should have listened to you! You're nuts, your whole idea is nuts!"

"Come on man, it's a card game." I couldn't help myself. The comment earned me a round of disapproving looks from the crowd, Nervin only looks more agitated. "Look, Nervin, do you remember Machina Fortress' special ability?"

One major difference between dueling in this world and reality is that in this world, nobody seems quite clear what each card does, even though they clearly spend more time studying the game.

"Right! Special ability!" Nervin immediately recalled the effects of his cards, "I activate Machina Fortress' special ability, when it's destroyed by battle, I can destroy one card on the field, so I can destroy your Black Luster Soldier!"

The crowd grew dead silent this time, recognizing Nervin as an actual strong duelist (snigger) instead of somebody who just got lucky.

"I still have Envoy of Chaos, attack!"

"Whew, we made it to the next turn," Nervin took a deep breath and let go slowly, looking calmer than he had since the beginning of the duel.

"I lay two cards face-down and end my turn." Chaos said through clenched teeth, laying both cards he had onto the field.

 **Turn 4: Yuki's Turn, Blizzard/Chaos 1500, Nervin/Yuki 2000  
**

"Don't let me down now," Blizzard grumbled repeatedly, staring at the facedown cards with a crazy look in his eyes.

"Be careful," Nervin looked even more nervous than Blizzard, "I bet he has something really powerful under there, like Mirror Force or something."

"Let's see," I drew, and looked at the card surprised- Double Summon. Maybe in this world, decks really do respond to what you need. Though to be fair, I've felt that way in my reality too.

"Well?" Nervin searched my face for any sign of good news, "Can you beat them? Can you? Cause if you don't, we're probably going to lose. So please beat them soon."

"I guess," I admitted a little hesitantly, but I wanted Nervin to beat them so he could hopefully become more confident and less like a scared sewer rat. On the other hand, losing probably wouldn't help his self-esteem either.

"Then what are you waiting for?" Nervin finally snapped, "Please, please just win. I don't want to lose again."

"Alright, I play fissure to destroy your monster. Next, I summon, **Ancient Gear Knight (lv4, 1800/500).** The spell card, Double Summon, this card lets me summon Ancient Gear Knight again!"

"Now, I use my Ancient Gear Knight to attack you directly!"

"Not so fast," Chaos shouted, "I activate my trap, Magical Cylinder, it reflects your attack right back at you!"

"Oh well, at least it's not Mirror Force!" Nervin let out a breath he had apparently been holding.

"Not quite," I replied, "Ancient Gear Knight's special ability allows him to be summoned a second time, and when he is, his effects are activated, so that no spell or trap cards can be activated until he has completed his attack."

"But, but that means," Chaos looked unsure for the first time since I've met him.

"That means our life points go to zero!" Blizzard squealed higher than the capabilities of my current body.

"It does?" Shocked by his own victory, Nervin still looked uncertain.

I shrugged, anything I say would just anger them further. Instead, I stretched out my neck to look at Galen's duel, his life point was still at 3400 while his opponent has dropped to 750LP. Blizzard was right, our duel did finish before his. But I didn't say that for fear of angering the mob.

"It does." Chaos managed to collect himself in that time, and walked up to me, still looking very impressive. I was at eye level with his eight-pack, maybe a little taller. I stared at his abs, then looked up at a chest that must have been at least a 40E, large enough that I didn't think I could cup it in one hand, though a part of me really wanted to try.

* * *

"You've earned this," he got down on one knee to look me at (roughly) eye level and handed me his deck.

It seemed wrong. It _was_ wrong, wasn't it, to take the last joys from their life away. I mean, in my defense, as far as they knew, they tried to do the same to us, yet it still seemed inappropriate. I think I didn't want to, within less than a day of coming here, to stoop to their level. On the other hand, I really needed that deck. With his Chaos deck, and a couple of light-attribute dragons, I could build a chaos-dragon deck for Galen, which would actually be usable in a real duel. Especially with limited spell cards in turbo duels, the dependence on effect monsters in a Chaos decks could come as an advantage.

"I can't," I finally said, "how are you going to survive on the street without your deck?" And in this world, that's a legitimate question.

"Take this then," Chaos pulled one card out of the pack, Black Lustre Soldier- Envoy of the Beginning, "he's my heart and soul, please take good care of him."

"I'll give it back once I build my own deck," I promised solemnly, even I could see the blue-eyed duelist obviously didn't take my words seriously.

I turned around to look for Blizzard also, but he had already disappeared into the crowds.

"This happened to him before," Chaos explained, sounding embarrassed at his tag duel partner's actions, "Ara won his Ice Blizzard deck a couple of years ago."

The deck caught my attention. I looked at Chaos questioningly, he nodded, "yeah, that was why he named himself Blizzard." Wasn't blizzard decks designed for XYZ summon? I wondered vaguely, and who was Ara?

"It's not his fault," I breathed out heavily. "When life teaches you that every bit of possession must be fought for, every bit of income is near-impossible to come by, you value things a little differently."

Chaos looked at me with a strange look in his eyes.

"Hey, we should meet up sometime. I'm trying to fix up my deck and I wanted to trade for a couple of cards." I offered. That was technically true. It was also true that these people were resourceful and a sort of figurehead in their respective communities. I needed to gather information and support from people like these if any of my plans were to work out.

"Sure," Chaos looked like he wanted to pat me on the back, but thankfully stopped half way, "I'll find you."

"Yuki!" Nervin suddenly popped up to my left, utterly disheveled, looking like he just got out of a stampede, or a Black Friday Sale, same thing really. Galen emerged immediately behind him, pushing on the tricycle that Nervin was pulling.

During our duel, the spectators had stayed respectably away. But after the duels ended, while Chaos kept the crowds away from me, Nervin had no such luck. It wasn't until Galen finished his duel that they managed to both escape from the mob with our belongings intact.

"I can get them off your case," Chaos offered.

"That won't be necessary," I turned down the suggestion. I may not be the bravest, or the smartest, or luckiest character on this show, but I wasn't going to be scared away from half-built decks and their half-literate owners. Plus, I needed their decks to build something that could reliably beat Sector Security. "Though if you could keep some sort of order in this place, I would really appreciate it."

"You got it."

"I won this." Galen handed a deck to me, proud as a cub on its first hunt.

"Good job," I resisted the urge to pat him on the head, doesn't work as well when he's taller than me. Everybody's taller than me. "Here, these are Nervin's cards, they should help you out." I handed him two Red-Eyes Black Chick _._

"Cool, thanks Nerv," He glanced at the cards and added them to his deck.

Nervin was still in a state of anime-like ecstasy, mostly involving decreased reaction to stimuli from the real world, staring off into space with random laughter, wild purposeless gesticulations and occasional drooling.

I waited for half a minute, then whacked him on the head.

"We won!" He grabbed me and lift me up Lion King-style. He probably would've tried to throw me into the air if not for physical limitations, aka insufficient upper body strength.

"We did win," I agreed, smiling back and inconspicuously moving away before he hurt himself. "Now we're gonna have to win some more." In Yusei's words, it's time to give my deck a tune up.

Crowds continues to gather around us, a faceless horde of greed, fear and hope, thinking their lives would miraculous change if if they just won enough children's card games. Chaos had maybe 15 people, and they were starting to have trouble keeping the crowds at bay.

"Like flies to honey," Chaos said disgustedly.

"We all have to eat," Galen greeted the older duelist with a nod, "We've all been part of that crowd once, hoping for a decent deck and our big break."

Chaos' expression grew stiff, he didn't say another word.

* * *

It was past midnight before the rest scampered. Nervin was feeling positively elated by the end of the night, Galen was surprisingly calm and collected.

"I defeated people like this for breakfast back in the day," he said casually, "it's not even a challenge." Which was true enough, his opponents were scared away once they learned his previous occupation (of the Sabaku district).

"Let's just go home," Nervin went back to his beloved tricycle, "we might get some work done tonight if we hurry."

I looked at the moon now directly overhead, it's got to be past midnight already. And no, these high-tech duel devices came with a GPS but not a watch. I told you this world was screwed up.

" _You_ can get some work done," Galen replied, trudging along, "I'm getting some sleep."

"Do you guys want a ride?" Chaos and his crew of under-aged children was still standing guard, wary of the dispersing crowd.

"Desperately," I answered, "we'll take literally anything."

And that's exactly what we did. Chaos had an electric scooter, the kind you see obese people drive at the supermarket. An electric scooter powered wirelessly by the all-powerful Momentum. This world confuses me sometimes.

"Aren't you concerned this could be seen as a duel runner?" Nervin asked with all sincerity. I laughed at the question, that thing didn't look like it could go 20 miles per hour.

"This isn't hard to build," Chaos answered with the same sincerity, "I've had to abandon several when Security comes after me."

Yeah, because he probably runs faster on foot. I thought I'd be polite and keep that comment to myself.

God how wrong I was.

Chaos attached our tricycle to his scooter, and another cart to the tricycle to accommodate passengers. After we've settled in, he took off. At 0 to 60 miles in under 2 seconds. I must emphasize _under_ because I counted two heartbeats during that time, 2 heartbeats while I was sitting in an open cart with no seat let along seat belt, shoddily connected to a tricycle that was shoddily connected to a scooter that just went from 0 to 60 in under 2 seconds.

We got back to Vincent's place in record time, even after taking numerous side streets to avoid Sector Security. Every single bone of my body felt out of place. Keeping in mind, our make-shift vehicle had no shock absorption, and the roads hadn't been maintained in well over a decade.

Apparently, I was the only one unaccustomed to this method of transportation, everybody else was perfectly fine and not thanking god that they were alive.

The ridiculous-suit gang came outside to see the commotion, still with top hat and all. The Satellite needs better fashion sense, amongst many other things.

"Chester?" Vincent struggled to identify the motorist (are you still a motorist if you drive a scooter?) in the headlight. The rest of us were crouched in the cart to avoid being thrown off.

"Chester?" I repeated, I could finally talk now without fear of chomping on my own tongue.

"It's Chaos now," our driver explained, it was dark enough that none of us saw his blush.

"Right, because you got that card! Hey, congratulations man. It's been a while," Vincent punched Chaos in the arm, "what are you doing in my neck of the woods?"

Chaos managed a smile, remembering the card that was his namesake, which he lost mere hours ago.

"Is he talking different or is it just me?" I asked Galen, who sniggered in response.

"He always talks like that when he's around people he hadn't dueled, he thinks it puts more distance between them." Galen's response rose more questions than it answered, but I let the case rest.

"Galen, Boss" Vincent heard us talk and directly his attention to the attached passengers.

"This is Nervin, umm" I introduced the newest addition to our crew. I just realized I didn't know his last name.

Vincent extended his hand, "Nervin Murray," the redhead informed me, "we've met."

Three (two?) simple words contained such restrained animosity and disgust that it startled me.

"Indeed," Nervin matched Vincent's tone and took his hand. If this were Dragon Ball Z, I'd see their force fields colliding.

"What brings glasses here?" Vincent released the handshake quickly and wiped his hands on his jacket. He turned around and went back inside without waiting for the rest of us, opening the door with such force it bounced against the wall. Chaos grabbed it before the metal gate hit Nervin. Nervin went in next, the rest of us trailed closely behind.

"Nervin's our chief engineer in designing a portable radio for sales," I said warningly, hoping these guys would play nice.

"We're starting our own company" Galen butted in between Vincent and Nervin, at least now I didn't need to worry about physical injuries, "we're going to make small radios that you can wear on your ears."

"Yes," Nervin assented, "we're starting a company that wouldn't move away, one that could start an industry and be catalyst for the formation of numerous supporting businesses right here in the Satellite." We had agreed not to mention the water thing until we have a more solid foothold in the area, to delay Sector Security getting wind of the idea.

Wow, he had far bigger plans for this little venture than I did.

"It'll create hundreds of jobs in the Satellite," Nervin finished with a condescending smirk, "you know, job, the thing you never had."

When Vincent didn't respond, Cyril defended him, "that's because chumps like you bend over backwards so you could get a job sorting garbage."

"We've all done that," Vincent patted his friend on the shoulder.

"A man's got to eat," Nervin took that as a sign of reconciliation, "but now we have better options, and I'll need a lot of help with the manufacturing." He looked to me inquiringly, it took me a minute to figure out he was implicitly asking me for consent.

"Yeah, of course," I agreed, "it'd be great if you guys could help out."

"I'll get working on the blueprints for our portable radio," Nervin offered, "it should take no more than half an hour."

I choked on the project timeline, I keep forgetting I'm not in Kansas anymore.

"You need anything?" Felice offered, her eyes never leaving Nervin's laptop. Satellite didn't sell electronics, so anything that use the Momentum are salvaged from the dumps or built from scratch. How can that thing still function though, after the ride we just had, was beyond me.

"I'm hoping to build at least the prototype by tonight," Nervin rubbed his chin thoughtfully.

"I'll see if I can't get some usable parts from storage." Chaos dragged Vincent away, the latter followed without too much resistance, "and he'll help."

"I'll check online to see if we can patent the idea," Felice continued to ogle at the laptop until Nervin relented its control, the young woman immediately started using it like a pro.

"I've been trying to build my own computer for years," she explained seeing my confusion, "nothing lasted more than a week, and eventually, I couldn't find any more parts to use."

"I'll set you guys up a work station," Galen pushed several bar stools a few inches into the dirt floor, then dragged out a collapsible piece of plastic to lay on top of the 'table legs'. I keep forgetting, this used to be his place.

"I'll grab the tools," Teddy offered, digging through a different pile of scrap metals.

"Okay then," I looked at hard-working bunch, a little uncomfortable, but not nearly uncomfortable enough to join them, "I'll go to bed and dream about growing taller. You guys should try sleeping before morning."

"I'll show you upstairs," Cyril motioned for me to follow him. I didn't see Chaos quickly standing up to see me leave, the others slowly followed.

I was led into an obviously make-shift bedroom, I could still see the markings on the floorboard from moved furniture. A bottle (stating it used to contain a drink called K-Jizz) of plastic flowers stood on the night stand, a couple of teen-girl magazines with Jack Atlas on the cover scattered on the chair, and pink flannel sheets; obviously hastily thrown together for my stay. Just grateful I didn't need to sleep on my plastic table top, I fell asleep as soon as I hit the bed, unaware even of Cyril shutting the door behind him, nor when he said quietly, "I think I'll give this a chance."

* * *

Downstairs was abuzz with energy despite the late hour.

"How long are you planning on staying?" Felice asked, digging up her storage for functional resisters.

"As long as it takes," Nervin said with a smile while he whacked Teddy on the head for playing with the acetylene torch, whispering to avoid his voice traveling upstairs.

"I thought you're staying with the Hope of the Satellite," Vincent leaned against the work stand, facing away from Nervin, "what happened, finally given up chasing unicorns?"

"He," the spectacled youth paused, "he brings out hope in all of us, that there _is_ hope, that somebody from Satellite _can_ escape. But even if it did happened, it'll only happened to the fortunate few. Even if I get to be one of these people… It's not the same. I thought this might be actual hope for _all_ of Satellite. And a chance to make that hope a reality for everybody."

"What makes you think _this_ one's gonna work out?" Vincent demanded, raising his voice almost to a shout that made Galen look up in surprise, "none of the others did. She's going to win until she loses, then everything we worked for goes up in flames." Had Yuki been present, she would have lamented the lack of property rights in this anarchist system.

"Remember Pearson?" Felice asked before Nervin had a chance to answer, "While he was in the Satellite, if he were still in the Satellite, wouldn't you have given anything to be part of what he started? We all need hope, Vincent, however slim it may look right now."

"Amen," Chaos echoed.

Vincent nodded and began sorting through the box of spares Felice brought. She had a point. Pearson's dead, but his company _had_ sent one person out of the Satellite. Maybe if this idea of Yuki's grew into something worthwhile, it could get four people out.

* * *

 **A/N:** That's about all the OCs for now ^_^

Also, duels should get more intense as the available cards improve, though I do try to restrict the number of turns per duel, otherwise I assume everybody gets bored, because I do.


	6. The Effects of Consumerism and Education

**Disclaimer** : I do not own YGO 5ds.

 **A/N:** Don't worry if you're not familiar with the decks mentioned, anything relevant would be explained in detail.

* * *

Rex Goodwin prided himself on discipline. He routinely slept at past midnight and got up before the crack of dawn. It practically came with the job description as the Director of Domino City.

Believing he had settle all urgent matters the day before, he was thus unpleasantly surprised to be woken up by a ringing of the telecom at 3 o'clock that morning, little under two hours before his scheduled alarm . Or as normal people think of it, 'an unholy hour in the middle of the night'.

"S-sir, Dir-rector Goodwin, sir," his doorman stuttered. Sweat dripped off the man's brow, while he was too scared to reach up and wipe it off. "There's, there's an o-officer from Sector Security to see you, sir. Level A clearance. I, I wouldn't have let him in, of course, b-but then I remembered that you told me to always alert you i-if anybody comes from Sector Security. So, umm..."

"Yes, of course," Goodwin nodded, now fully alert and looking as imposing as always even without a shirt,"show him into the living room, I'll be right over." He hang up before the other man had time to respond, not wanting anybody to see the concern in his eyes.

He and Roman had long decided that conventional methods of communication was too risky for their current endeavors. As the Director of Neo Domino City, he could always arrange impromptu visits to the Satellite if he needed to communicate with his older brother. Roman, however, preferred not showing himself in the City. They were, after all, the infamous minions for the notorious Professor Futou, the sole cause of the Zero-Reverse incident. While he 'reformed' himself, Roman was assumed dead. Being seen in the City would raise too many red flags for his older brother.

Instead, Roman had resorted to using his spiders to mind-control a Sector Security officer and relay any urgent messages in person.

This arrangement had enabled them to communicate within 24 hours whenever necessary.

Of course, if there had been cellphones, the Goodwin brothers could have just called with a burner phone, and not brainwash a poor chap on his day off.

Quickly getting dressed, Rex Goodwin walked uncharacteristically hurriedly towards the single living room in his mansion. The security officer greeted him stiffly, his awkwardness just enough to be dismissed as exhaustion or excitement at meeting the Director. To Goodwin's trained eye, the mindless stare was apparent, this was one of his brother's spawn. Waving away the servants that always guarded this area, Goodwin reached inside the fireplace to open a trap door to one of the safest hidden room in the house. Hidden in plain sight, as he always believed.

The Director of Domino City showed the security guard inside before following closely behind and closing the door. Only here would he trust not to be overheard by even the men under his control.

The two men entered an abandoned-looking storage unit. Filled with dust and cobwebs, only the ceiling-high empty wine crates remained from its glorious days, an extra layer of security in case somebody does happen to stumble upon this hideout. Goodwin flipped on the light, facing the man his brother send.

"All hail the King," He muttered reluctantly, the password his older brother unilaterally dictated for the brainwashed minions he sends Rex's way. This trivial resentment soon dissipated as he heard the message magically relayed to him.

A shift in the power equilibrium of this caliber is well-worthy of even Rex Goodwin's time. With the magical surge he sensed within of the King of the Netherworld, Roman Goodwin is concerned about the waning of the Crimson Dragon's powers, and asked his younger brother regarding changes in the Crimson Dragon. An answer the younger Goodwin cannot provide, as he had not chosen to bear the mark of the Crimson Dragon as yet. No matter, he'll speak to Roman and bluff his way through like he always does.

He did, however, choose to follow his brother's other instructions. They had waited long enough, it _is_ time to gather the Signers of the Crimson Dragon. It simply would not do for one side to overpower the other, Goodwin requires the two sides to be in perfect balance to control both beasts.

Dismissing the security officer and restoring his hidden room, Goodwin marched purposefully to his home office.

"Lazar." Powerful villains were generally ruthless about waking people up in the middle of the night unnecessarily, which is without a doubt an act of pure evil. Goodwin waited for his purple-haired vice-Director to appear on screen, still dressed in his Meowth pajamas, then immediately barked orders, "our most recent shipment of second-hand duel runners are not to be refurbished, discard them to the Satellite as scraps."

"Director Goodwin?" Lazar's eyes widened in surprise. He didn't understand a word his boss said, as was natural when you receive a phone call at 3am, just Goodwin's call was shock enough at this hour. The incredibly large eyes grew even bigger when he comprehended Goodwin's message. "But Director Goodwin! I'm not saying you're not right of course, but surely there're most profitable ways to reuse these duel runners. Might I suggest recycle the parts? Or at least melt the dyne?"

"I hired you to follow orders, Lazar," Goodwin threatened impatiently, even villains get grumpy when they're tired, "don't ever forget that."

"Yes, my sincerest apologies, Dire-"

Without waiting for the smaller man to finish, Goodwin cut off communications. Taking a long look at the moonless sky outside, he put on his jacket and contacted his chauffeur.

It's 4am, might as well get to work. This new development would no doubt require countless additional hours of analysis, they all do. Who needs sleep anyways?

* * *

At the core of Old Domino, the light of day had done nothing to penetrate the heart of darkness dwelling deep beneath the core Zero Reverse reactor. Roman Goodwin again sat at the head of the table on the lowest level of the building, in the room closest to hell.

The room remained absolutely silent except for the flickering of the candles, one for each of the members present, and Roman's fingers tapping rapidly on the mahogany table, the sound echoed back to him, resonating against the empty stones halls. Roman started when he heard the noise, mentally berating himself for his subconscious actions. He was usually more controlled than this.

But the prospect of a greatly weakened Crimson Dragon, combined with Rex's lack of response this late in the day, worried him more than anything else had since he chose this path of darkness. But this time, he was not alone.

"Roman," Demack said impatiently, "you called us here."

"There is a change of plans," Roman Goodwin announced without waiting to hear back from his younger sibling. Rex would obey his older brother, he always does. "We're moving everything ahead of schedule. Spread your webs now, grow your clusters, prepare for war."

Silence answered him, the Dark Signers' noise of consent.

"Kalin," Roman turned to the blue-haired teen, his real objective for the meeting, "Search the Satellite. Report back to me any changes. The King of the Netherworld grows impatient, something stoked its ire."

While his spiders detects nothing extraordinary, perhaps a Dark Signer would.

Roman was telling a half-truth, which he was very good at. The Demon _is_ getting restless, but only because it senses the weakness in its arch nemesis. Roman was eager to quell its impulses, or at least prepare for the Demon's eventual descent into this realm.

"So it begins," Kalin laughed, "and how much longer, Roman, before I get _my_ revenge."

"Soon," Roman said simply. Having the strongest magical powers of the group, the leader of the Dark Signers paid little heed to his colleagues.

"Keep your words," Kalin stood up quickly, "and I think you'll be more than satisfied with my work."

* * *

Various planning and chatter had lasted late into last night, plans were made, people were recruited and evil plots plotted, while I slept blissfully upstairs in the Magician's hideout. I only woke up when Felice knocked on my door the next morning.

"What time is it?" if the question sounded a little resentful, that's because it was.

My head was pounding with obvious sleep deprivation. Rhythmic mechanical noise drifted up from downstairs, like a white noise machine effectively luring me back to sleep. It's rude to sleep in as a guest though.

"It's six o'clock," she replied from the other side of the door.

"AM?" I asked incredulously, I must have slept at 1am in the morning.

"Get up, there's something downstairs you really should see," she urged in an excited, conspiratorial tone. I was suspicious of what they could create in five hours, but I obviously couldn't stay in bed anymore, no matter how much I wanted to.

Never having undressed last night, I reluctantly got up and opened the door for the excited, no-longer-in-a-suit whitehead. For once, the Magician wore a simple t-shirt, still in purple, I noted with some amusement.

"Let's see it," I replied groggily. Given the water shortage, I decided I could probably skip showering for a day and purposely ignored the question of when this body last showered.

"This way," Felice smiled excitedly.

She covered my eyes and guided me towards the stairs, mechanical noises grew louder and much more unpleasant.

"Ta-da! May I present to you, the beginnings of your empire." she let go at the top of the stairs to reveal, at least I think she wanted me to see, over twenty people working downstairs, the source of the noise I hear upstairs. These kids, the oldest of which barely looked 18, worked like cogs in a well-oiled machine.

What's happening? Did one of those duelists with superpowers brainwash them last night? That would explain so much.

I stared at the rows of workbenches, occupied mostly by teens and pre-teens, sorting and assembling metallic or plastic pieces too small to identify at this distance. I only recognized the few adults in the crowd, Nervin was walking between benches, bending down occasionally to answer a question or prevent a disaster.

The Magicians worked mostly with welding equipment, and stood out by their brightly colored clothing, thankfully sans circus-suit. Cyril put on a powder blue shirt, Teddy wore a green tank top in the color of my hair, and Vincent wore no shirt at all, revealing ripped muscles that spoke very highly of nutritional value in the disgusting Satellite rations, glistening with the sweat of hard work. Not safe when welding, but yum. Wait, who let Teddy join the adult group, isn't he like 14? I need to talk to Nervin about it. The end products were tossed carelessly into large black garbage bins that lined the walls.

Was I supposed to feel like Santa? I didn't.

Who am I kidding? It's minors performing repetitive manual labor at 6am, it's not a craft station, it's a F* sweatshop. I think Felice meant the beginning of my labor camp.

"But" I was stunned speechless, "What? How? Who did this?"

Felice almost cowered when she saw my expression.

Down on the factory (let's call it that) floor, Chaos saw my undisguised distaste and froze, he dragged Nervin away from his post (from his very important job of presumably preventing anyone from losing a finger), and walked up the stairs hiding behind the much skinnier man.

"What happened?" I removed 'the hell' from that question with some effort, they had obviously worked hard on, whatever this was. I should at least listen to their side of the story.

"I, umm," Chaos stuttered, "I brought these kids over last night."

Last night, there _was_ _no_ last night, it was 1am _this morning_ when I got back.

"We needed people to put together our mini-clip radios," Nervin added, thinking he was being helpful. That didn't answer any of my questions, I could see _what_ they were doing, I wanted to know _why_.

"Why did we hire children?" I blurted the question out, there was really no good way to ask that.

"It's really much more economical to hire underage workers," Chaos said stiffly as though reciting a speech.

"Especially seeing as the majority of the associated tasks do not require intense physical exertion. Younger employees complete most tasks on par with, or faster than their older counterparts. Taking into consideration their caloric intake, the age for maximum productivity is 13 to 15. The younger ones can still work of course," he added hastily, "especially the 9, 10 year-olds, they've really picked up since last night. I assure you, all attempts have been made to maximize profits."

Last night...

My face grew from mild displeasure, to revulsion, to abhorrence, and finally settled on 'what the hell is wrong with you people', a sentiment that I voiced loudly.

"What's wrong? It's a good job and they're pretty good at it" Felice didn't understand my anger, "and we _are_ paying them."

Chaos nodded in agreement, looking perplexed and a little like a St Bernard.

"What they meant," Nervin nudged the larger man aside, he seemed to be the only one who understood me, "is that these kids need a job, and shelter, and some protection. All of which we can provide when they work here. Letting them work here is charity really."

"Charity," I repeated with disgust, " _charity_. How stupid do you think I am? Neo Domino handing out food to minors is charity (well, barely, more like social responsibility, but that's a whole other discussion), and we will _not_ stoop lower than the Domino government"

While it's probably unwise to attack the other three people, all of whom were at least a head taller than me, I don't think I could resist for much longer.

"The government-issued food isn't enough to eat, let along getting other necessities. These kids need work, and can't find it anywhere else," Nervin argued, "They don't have a better choice, this is as good a chance as they'll get in the Satellite."

"What about every other kid, what do they do?" I questioned suspiciously, I can't find a flaw in his argument but it instinctively sounded wrong.

"You know," Nervin suddenly changed the subject, "I was twelve when Zero-Reverse happened. Even then, the Satellite area was a dump, but we still had things like hospitals and schools, and I was a pretty good student."

"Get to the point," I prompted impatiently.

"So I remember learning," Nervin ignored my interruption, "that Domino City, the whole city back then, had a population of around 1.3 million. About 1 million lived in what is now the Satellite, the rest lived in the area occupied by Neo Domino City."

He didn't need to say anymore, my blood already froze in my veins.

There was less than half a million people living in the Satellite now, and over two hundred thousand in Neo Domino City. Keeping in mind, _there is no way to get out of the Satellite_. Yet the population decreased to a half in less than two decades.

Zero-Reverse was advertised as the calamity of the century, and had a death toll of 13,000. Tragic, but it doesn't even put a dent into the death rate. To put things into perspective, think of your best friend, only one of you gets to live.

Sometimes, numbers were more terrifying than words could ever be.

"I see that you're familiar with the most recent statistics. So _that_ , Boss," Nervin finished mercilessly, "is what everybody _else_ is doing."

"What about, you know, _not_ forcing, okay, 'convincing' minors into hard labor?" I struggled to defend my argument, a little desperately this time.

While it goes against every fiber of my being, even I had to admit that, while being stuck in the Satellite, our factory wasn't the worst option. It's a step up from death by starvation, hypothermia, gang fights or various diseases prevalent when the majority of the population were malnourished, uneducated, without healthcare access, and lived more or less on the streets (by my standards). Basically the fate of the previous inhabitant of my body.

"We can't afford it," Nervin countered bluntly, "we can't afford to just feed twenty kids at this stage, because we can't afford to hire more people, not if you want this company to survive."

"Well," I scratched my head, "I'm not particularly attached to the company; we can start others." But even as I said it, I knew it wouldn't be practical. It takes massive amounts of resources to manufacture and sell our products, especially as a company situated in the Satellite, we might not get another chance for years.

"Our bankruptcy wouldn't help anybody," Nervin rolled his eyes, "I don't know where you got all this Neo Domino fantasies, but that doesn't work here in the Satellite. You'll do what you can if you want this company to even stay afloat."

I sighed deeply. Realities suck, some worse than others.

"They're working well," Chaos looked lost throughout Nervin's short speech, and just started to understand the conversation again, "very efficient, 6 to 8 just like the factories."

I don't think he meant 6am to 8am.

Felice rose her hands to her lips and made a zipping motion.

"Not helping," Nervin added.

I stood there mortified. I finally understood the essence of the Satellite factories, though I personally preferred calling them workhouses because that what they were. Gather up the poor and restless, force them into hard labor in exchange for survival, so they would be too worn out to think about their own misery while making ludicrous profits for the manufacturing industry (does that count as an upside?).

A true innovation at its conception during the 19th century, where it should have stayed.

But this Japan had regressed to a feudal system, I knew that, I just didn't quite understand what that meant until now. In this more primitive society, the reach of federal law rarely extended past federal land, which currently is 16% of Japan.

Corporations, thanks to modern (ish?) technology, remained international. With different countries, counties and governments mostly in hostile relations, corporate laws became impossible to enforce, then obsolete. As it is, Satellite had too much in common with the dawn of the 20th century, the age of the Robber Baron.

Makes sense, almost. Childhood is really a post-Industrial Revolution concept, when the human race gained the luxury to offer their young reprieve from adulthood. The Satellite no longer has that luxury.

"Right," I stared out onto the factory floor, where teens and tweens were grateful for the chance of working 14 hours a day, so they didn't become the 1/2 of the population that doesn't make it (literally). "Adjust the working hours, and add an education system, we'll find the money somewhere. And for god's sake, don't hire anybody under 12!" At least with kids over twelve, I can lie to myself and say it's a part-time job, after I institute part-time hours, of course.

I directed the order at Nervin, he was the only one who could comprehend my moral system, or so I thought.

"Education?" Chaos repeated as though the term was foreign to him.

"Why?" Felice asked and meant it.

"What they're asking is, how could education help these kids in any way?" Nervin amended the previous two questions, "academia has no place in the Satellite."

My mind blanked, I find myself honestly not knowing how to answer their questions. Universal education has become so common place to me that I never thought it needed justification

"There _are_ some people who went to school in the Satellite," Nervin went on to explain, "Whether they received an education before the Incident, or went to school in Neo Domino before being sent here, but no jobs here require an education, and it's not like most of them would be able to start something for themselves, school or no school. So what's the point of getting an education?"

"Uh..." I stammered. Though the effects of education may be variable on each individual, and it's very possible for somebody with less education to do better than somebody with more education, an educated society would trounce an uneducated society any day. History had proven that time and again. I just didn't know why. "These kids need to go to school, they're like, ten!"

"Can we afford it?" Felice countered bluntly. "It'll hard enough to stay afloat as it is, we have better uses for the money and the labor. We probably won't teach these kids anything anyways."

She had a point. While I wholeheartedly believe in (at least) basic universal education, we might go bankrupt before any of these kids learned how to add. The company almost definitely won't last long enough for us to reap any benefit from our investments into primary education. If anything, it'll help attract attention from NDC and get all of us locked up (sooner than we otherwise might have been).

Even more practically, there's currently not one, not two, but at least three different groups* actively plotting to destroy the world within the next two years. By all logic, preventing that should take precedent over a likely-temporary educational effort.

It _should_ but it doesn't. I don't think I could sleep at night if I ended up putting minors into sweatshops 'for the greater good'.

"I'm sorry, would you like to do a cost-benefit analysis of educating nine-year-olds as opposed to putting them into intense physical labor?" I asked sarcastically, secretly proud of myself for successfully going around the argument.

"I've heard of cost-benefit analysis back when-" Chaos stopped abruptly, then started again. "I heard cost-benefit analysis were a good idea, they um."

"So, what do you want to do?" Nervin ignored Chaos, his eyes trained on me. "Keep in mind, we can't help anybody if you run what little we have into the ground."

"We'll start with vocational schools then. Language, math and specific skill sets," I finally relented, realizing I had no idea what kind of education the Satellite, or these satellites needs at this point.

"I'll write up an outline for the curriculum," Felice volunteered. I nodded approvingly, that's less work for me.

"Work out a sustainable schedule too," I gestured downstairs, still uncomfortable at the scene and quickly retreated back to my room to the comfort of trading cards. Yes, trading cards. An arguably useful tool in this world that can help you forget the troubles of reality.

* * *

All the cards I won from the night before, plus what Vincent offered me, several hundred in total, were methodically spread out on the bed. The tiny desk that came with this room wasn't nearly large enough.

Sitting on the floor by the side of the bed, I sighed deeply, banging my head against the mattress and getting Left Hand of the Forbidden One stuck on my forehead in the process.

I had a collection most people in the Satellite could only dream about. That didn't mean I had a good deck.

I would wish for a Yang Zing deck, or maybe Scraps, or even Synchrons. What I had was an excellent Gimmick Puppeteer deck, one of the best XYZ decks, except XYZ extra deck monsters did not yet exist in this world. Literally.

The theory of duel monsters, as far as I could tell, is that existing duel monster somehow exert their influence on the human realm such that mortals create their corresponding cards. Since alien species that constitutes XYZ extra deck monsters had yet not made their way to earth, there were no XYZ summoning. Even though the non-extra deck monsters, which are native to the duel monster realm, still existed at this point in time.

(Thus was Yukie's best and feeble attempt to make sense of the plot-hole ridden world in which she was trapped.)

I managed a half-assed Six Samurai deck, hopefully enough against the nameless minor characters I hope to defeat.

* * *

* three's counting Dark Signers, Rex Goodwin and Z-One's team. Sayer deserves an honorable mention but doesn't really count, he wants to take over the world, not destroy it.

 **A/N:** Remember Robert Pearson? The guy Crow mentioned who worked on his duel runner company  with the kids Crow was taking care of? That was really odd, those kids couldn't be more than 10 years old at the time.

And since a teenage street runt like Crow was taking care of a few kids, we can assume there were many kids that needed care of some sort.

 **A/N 2:** The anime repeatedly shows rows upon rows of empty houses, and occasional abandoned sky scrapers in the Satellite. _If nobody could leave the Satellite, where did their original occupants go?_ Something are chilling when you think about it.

It wouldn't make sense for the entire city to live underground. It's also unreasonable to assume a single event, earthquake, explosion or Zero Reverse, would kill most people in the city, but leave the buildings largely intact. So we can assume whatever it was occurred after Zero-Reverse.

 **A/N 3:** It also really bugged me when, in the Z-One arc, Crow claimed the 10 year-old orphans would have still had parents if Zero Reverse hadn't happened 17 years ago…. Think about it.

Even the 'gang war' theory doesn't play out- in a disorganized chaos like the Satellite, the adults had a much better chance of survival than children.

So:

All taken together, my theory is radiation of some sort from the incident plus poor healthcare, thus targeting adults, who had less self-regenerative properties. Hence the number of orphans in the Satellite and the high death rates.

This might not come up in the story again so I thought I'd mention it here.

…

This is a happy story, honest, it just takes some time getting there.


	7. Kalin Kessler

**Disclaimer** : I do not own YGO 5ds.

* * *

"Nervin ran," Tank sat down heavily on the sofa, tossing Nervin's letter in Blitz's general direction. "I knew that four-eyes was going to be a problem. Never liked him to begin with."

Used to Nervin's numerous late-night work calls, Yusei's crew didn't discover the letter Nervin carefully hid under the keyboard until the next morning.

"Our situation does look unpromising," Blitz admitted after quickly glancing through the letter, "at least he didn't sell us out."

"You mean not yet," Tank said darkly.

"Guys," Yusei took the letter from Blitz's hand, reading every word carefully. "I trust Nervin, so if he said he had something important to do, I believe him. He doesn't want to compromise us in case something goes wrong. I'm going to find him and see what happened."

After what happened with Jack, Yusei reluctantly admitted that there was a possibility that Nervin had left them to pursue better opportunities. He didn't think Nervin would do that, but then again, he didn't think Jack would betray them so utterly either. If that was the case, he'd leave his friend be. But until he could be sure his friend didn't need his help, he was obligated to at least try.

Tank grumbled something under his breath, Blitz shook his head skeptically.

"Yusei!" A voice far too deep to match its pre-pubescent owner echoed loudly in the subway tunnel. "Look what I found."

Rally ran up, holding almost-new rims to a duel runner. "The new shipment just came in, there's a big pile of duel runner parts in the scrapyard. You should go check it out! Maybe you can find something useful for your new runner."

"I need to find Nervin now, Rally," Yusei smiled gravely, "Why don't you let Crow know, I'm sure he would love some duel runner parts too."

"No, you don't understand!" Rally protested, "There is a _big_ pile of duel runner parts." The feminine kid that 4Kids insisted was male spread his arms out to emphasize the size of his discovery, "more than enough for the both of you."

"Go check it out," Blitz urged, "Tank and I can go find Nervin."

"Yeah," Tank agreed, "your runner's way more important. It's the hope for all of us to get out of Satellite, remember?" He didn't comment on Nervin and Yusei didn't notice.

Yusei hesitated, looking at the half-built runner parked beside the wooden plank he used as a bed. It's risky to leave the runner incomplete for too long, Sector Security may come confiscate it at any time. And Tank was right, that duel runner was a chance to get out of the Satellite, for all of them, including Nervin, wherever he is.

"Thanks you guys," Yusei decided finally with a heavy heart, "please let me know when you guys find him, and if he needs anything at all. I should be back by noon."

* * *

Another ex-Enforcer was feeling much more relaxed.

"Well, well, well," An uncomfortably shrill voice rang out from the front yard, "look what we have here!"

"Oh!" That voice was a little higher than I remembered, but I did recognize it with some certainty. It's really the hyena quality in his voice that sets it apart. After adequate amounts of food and sleep, it wasn't difficult to identify the recluse whom I thought was a pervert who approached young women on the streets.

I looked out the window. Our visitor was covered from head to toe, this time with an extra black cloak over his face and jacket. I could barely see his features, but I'd remember that hyena laugh anywhere. As if the cloaked intruders sensed my gaze, golden eyes looked up at me aggressively. I can imagine the light blue hair, black jacket and red Dark Signer mark on his face hidden under the cloak.

"Why hello stranger," I waved energetically with a forced grin, "wait right there, I'll be right down."

I ran down the stairs, jumping the last three steps, and crossed the yard in a few long steps to greet our hooded visitor.

I did like Kalin, he was my third favorite Enforcer.

More importantly, I had a vague idea of my colleagues' opinion of the ex-leader of the Enforcers, and I didn't want all the management of this little venture running off in fear. Or risk Kalin's response to such a situation.

Unfortunately, Cyril was a little faster than me. Having fumbled and almost killed himself with a stick welder, he was relegated clean-up duty, which he was performing close to the front door at the time.

"The loony bin's closed," Cyril approached Kalin carelessly just as I reached the bottom of the stairs, "take your crazy somewhere else. We're trying to do business here." He cast a disapproving glance back at me, as though displeased with my acquaintances.

Kalin reached out a pale boney hand and clutched Cyril by the throat, holding the white-haired teen up and letting him struggle helplessly for a second before casting him aside like a broken duel disk.

I gulped.

Cyril remained curled up on the ground where he was thrown, trembling uncontrollably. Growing up in the Satellite after Zero Reverse, he had been through far worse physical pain. The problem is, he had gotten close enough to Kalin that the hooded cloak no longer hid the older man's face, and recognized him instantly. To duel gangs in the Satellite, Enforcers were the stuff of nightmares. Not exactly what the Enforcers do to them, as much as what the other satellites do after witnessing their defeat. Most duel gangs consists of adults and do rely on their territory to survive. If that is lost, their duel disks destroyed, and their record prevents them from finding a job anywhere in the Satellite, well, let's just say it's not pretty.

"Back," I motioned to everybody crowding over from the commotion, "get back to work, I'll handle this." Somehow.

I managed to smile apologetically to Kalin before walking back to the entrance to the building, where Chaos hang at the back of the crowd that was now entering back into the factory.

"Evacuate. Now." I whispered urgently in his ear, having no time to offer explanations. I liked Kalin, but I wasn't naïve enough to pretend he wasn't an unstable maniac at this point in the story. An unstable mania capable of summoning physical monsters and murdering everybody in our little factory on a whim. And at this point in the story, Kalin was partial to whims.

Thankfully, Chaos obeyed without question. I closed the door behind him as he went in. Now I just have to get rid of the nut job, or at least appease him long enough for the evacuation protocols to complete. Note to self, run regular drills from now on.

"Hi," I grinned again, looking more natural this time. I truly believed Kalin was one of the good guys, that doesn't make him any less dangerous when crazy, "Remember me?"

"You?" Kalin paused, he voice momentarily restored to its normal tone, then turned shrill again, "So you're the little rat that's been causing up a stir in the Satellite."

I wonder how and why the Earthbound Immortals would mess with your vocal cords.

Kalin pushed back his hood a little, revealing most of his face. Now that we met again, I can't believe I didn't recognize him the first time. Shoulder-length hair that I initially thought was grey had in fact been a light blue. Through the hooded cloak, I could make out the red markings of the Dark Signers along his right cheek, covering the yellow branding left by the Facilities. Only darkness occupied the whites of his eyes, though his iris remained pure golden.

"It's nice to see you again," I said almost sincerely, Kalin was one of my favorite Enforcers, even if he _was_ a little stupid, and now a lot crazy.

"You know who I am?" Kalin asked accusingly, his eyes narrowing dangerously. It made him look like a large cat on the prowl, maybe a leopard?

"The famous Kalin Kessler, how could I not?" I laughed, a little more genially this time, extending a hand, "it's a pleasure. I'm Yuki by the way." Under different circumstances, I would have loved to meet him.

"Another satellite to marvel at Crazy Kalin, are you?" Kalin demanded defensively. He slapped my proffered hand away.

"Not at all," Absolutely.

I got a little closer, placing a hand lightly on his elbow and slowly guiding him towards the corner of the door closest to the exit, where we'd both be hidden by the incomplete metal wall Vincent erected around their perimeters. It would cause havoc if anybody in the Satellite or Neo Domino saw Kalin here, I don't think I can handle more havoc right now. I kicked Cyril as I passed where he laid on the ground, hoping he'd get the hint and get out of here. He didn't even stir.

Kalin studied me suspiciously, but followed nonetheless, confident in his own abilities.

"What brings you here?" I asked, changing the subject. The canon was very vague on the specific duties of Dark Signers prior to the start of the plot, but I had to assume Roman Goodwin didn't sleep the past 17 years away.

"Ah," Kalin resumed that high-pitched voice, "I come seeking those who have invoke the ire of the gods, and inform you of their imminent descent to get their revenge."

Would the gods be appeased with an offering of duel monster cards? I stopped myself from asking, but decided to put that joke aside for later.

"I'm not sure what that means," I said instead, being mostly honest. I can assume he was referring to either the earthbound immortals or the King of the Netherworld, and my attempt to leave the Satellite would obviously interfere with their 'soul searching'.

"I am of the Dark Signers," Kalin said boastfully, "and your actions have angered the Dark King. Prepare, for soon, you will be wiped off the earth like a smudge of dirt."

Dark King means that Netherworld thing? Did Roman Goodwin send him?

Whatever the case, I have to stop him from reporting back, I can't afford Roman Goodwin's attention right now.

"Your plan is to tell on me?" I mocked with exaggerated surprise, "hardly becoming of the leader of the Enforcers is it?" It was clear I can't appeal to the goodness of his heart while he's in his current state, but I can still get to him somehow.

Kalin smiled down at me disdainfully, completely unaffected even by the Enforcer comment. "I can't be bothered with trash like you. But the Fates have spoken, your presence in the Satellite will be erased, Yuki. Make the best of your last few days on earth."

"So you _are_ going to turn around and report back to your master?" I asked sarcastically, trying to provoke a reaction. Shouldn't be too hard. This is the kid who thought he could run a city with 4 teenagers, I should be able to talk circles around him.

"It's a fate you can't escape, Yuki," He said, completely unmoved by my insults.

"I _know_ you don't want to do this, Kalin," I tried a slightly different approach and took hold of his arm.

"You know nothing about me," he hissed.

Ah, so that's where he's vulnerable.

"I might know more than you think. Tell you what, I'm going to tell you what I know about you. If I say anything wrong, anything at all, you can turn around and report back to your boss, but if I get everything right, we pretend this meeting never happened." Without waiting for a reply, I continued. Kalin growled but didn't struggle against my grasp. "You wanted to leave the Satellite," I began, "You might have even planned it, but nothing would work, would it? Not even in your wildest imagination."

"How could it?" Kalin spat out despite himself, "even if we somehow make it to Domino City, the odds of us managing to stay there is hundred to one."

"So you resorted to the second best thing, you thought you'd fix the Satellite." I continued, smiling at his outburst. Reaction is good, reaction is very good. "You honestly thought you'd make the Satellite as good as Neo Domino." I didn't bother hiding the derision from my voice, Kalin's face darkened at my words, he shook his arm against my grasp. I let go. He's not going to leave now.

"You thought duel gangs were the problem," I continue, my confidence growing, "so you tackled that. You thought if there were no interferences with the market, prosperity would naturally follow." A very rudimentary idea of the free market, especially considering all the other factors at play in the Satellite, I could hear Kalin's teeth grinding at my condescending tone, "but it didn't, and it never will. Because the Domino City made sure of that. You were supposed to be the Hope for the Satellite, but even you were beginning to lose hope. That's when you attacked Sector Security too."

"What's your point?" Kalin asked impatiently, "or did you just want to mock everything I worked for before your untimely death?"

"My point is," I tried a more genuine smile, "your plan never would have worked, but mine actually has a chance. So I'm asking you to give it the chance it deserves. Do not reveal our little operation, let it fester and see how it changes the city you grew up in."

"You know nothing about me," Kalin repeated his earlier assertion, "I wanted control of the Satellite, it's that simple. That's why I defeated the gangs, that's why I challenged Sector Security. But if you're so sure of yourself, let's duel," Kalin said vehemently, "if you manage to win, I will keep your plans a secret."

He said it so quickly I suspected that he didn't give it a second thought, because it's a ridiculous proposal.

"If I understand things correctly, if you win, I die. If I win, you die. Either way, it'll be impossible for this place remain a secret, which is what I'm trying to accomplish." I made a show of rolling my eyes.

Kalin was obviously flustered at my rebuttal, I do have to give him credit for thinking fast. "I'll duel with a proxy," he suggested as though it was his plan all along, "that should do." I followed Kalin's fingers to Cyril, who had gotten up, but refused to leave no matter how many glares I sent his way.

… I paused, cautiously weighing my options, not that there are many. Since I'm not actually risking my life, there's very little to lose. That risk is well worth a chance to evade attention of Dark Signers. Even without a decent deck, I still had enough knowledge of Kalin's Infernity deck to give me a significant advantage.

"I accept your challenge," I said after some thought, "Just let me pick out a deck first."

"You don't keep your deck with you?" Kalin asked in surprise. Even Cyril hmmphed disapprovingly.

"I was just editing my deck when you stopped by," I muttered. "Wait here."

Finally getting a chance to go back inside, I felt a wave of relieve washing over me when I found the house completely empty, even our equipment and finished goods were gone. Growing up in the Satellite teaches you to move quickly should the need arise.

Duel monster cards were still spread out on the bed as I had left them, my eyes ran over the limited practical selections with a frown. In my reality (no, this is still not my reality), Infernity remains one of the more powerful archetypes even during the XYZ era. Not many archetypes can reliably defeat an Infernity deck, and I didn't even have any complete archetypes from which I could choose. A chaos deck then, I finally decided. Plus anti-meta, which means stopping the opponent from rapidly summoning many monsters to swarm the field, the staple trait of Infernity decks.

I walked downstairs almost confidently. Nervin had lent me his few Synchro monsters after he lost one too many duels to kids working in the factory, so I at least have a chance now against the notorious Enforcer leader.

Seeing me walking downstairs, Kalin got up and easily dragged Cyril over by the back of his shirt.

"Let's duel" he said impatiently, "I can't wait to completely crush you."

"How about we keep the duel inside," I suggested instead, taking hold of Kalin's arm again and guiding him into the building, immediately closing the door behind me. Thanks to the fence, Kalin had been hidden from outside view, but if we start summoning giant holographic monsters, his identity is almost certain to be discovered by curious spectators. That would, naturally, be counter-productive to my goal of staying more or less anonymous until the Dark Signer Arc so I don't get killed in the crossfire.

"You really think dueling in here would give you some advantage to defeat me?" Kalin sneered.

"No," I corrected patiently, "I really think dueling you in public would screw me over in more ways than I can imagine." That shut him up.

* * *

"Oh, hey guys," Rally greeted Blitz and Tank as they came back into the Subway tunnel, "I just got back from Crow's, he said he'd keep an eye out for Nervin too. Did you find him?"

"Nah," Tank replied, "We just came back from an extra shift in the factory. If Nervin wants to come back, he can find us."

"What?" Rally exclaimed, "but you said you would!"

"Nervin made his own decision to leave," Blitz explained. While he liked Yusei and was naturally drawn to the goodness and energy in the wild-haired teenager, he didn't want Rally to end up like that. Yusei was far from naïve, but he was too trusting. It's a very expensive trait to own in the Satellite. Without Yusei's natural talents, Rally might not be able to afford it.

"Nervin made his own decision to leave," He repeated, "And we respect that decision. It would come with risks and rewards, but that's all his now, it doesn't have anything to do with us anymore."

"So you're saying we don't care about his problems anymore? I can't believe you guys! You promised Yusei you'd look for him." Rally protested, "didn't you guys ask around at all?"

"A street walker did say he saw Nervin going to the Sabaru district last night," Tank admitted, "but that's just gossip, flimsy at best. You know he also said that Nervin won a bunch of duels?"

"Well, it's still a clue, and _I'm_ going to find him, maybe Yusei's right and he needs our help." Rally ran up the stairs.

Tank and Blitz looked at each other, then reluctantly followed their young friend out into daylight.

* * *

 **A/N:** If you think I stole the offering cards to gods joke from the Abridged series, you're right and I did.

 **A/N 2:** I've always liked Kalin.

I don't think he went power-crazy and therefore attacked the Sector thinking he could actually win (that would have to be a truly incredible level of stupid, more on why later), I think he was just desperate when he finally realized nothing he could done would significantly improve anybody's life in the Satellite. The attack on Sector Security was essentially on a suicide mission, though it's just possible he even convinced himself that it might work.

 **A/N 3:** Since enough people asked, this will in no way be a 'let's do a main character' story. I have far bigger plans. Kalin is showing up a lot because the Dark Signers would inevitably be aware of and interested in any drastic change in the Satellite this close to the rise of their god(?).


	8. How to Finish a Shadow Duel

**Disclaimer** : I do not own YGO 5ds.

 **A/N:** This used to be part of the last chapter, but the duel ran a little long. Kalin Kessler uses an Infernity deck, and a good hand could last 5 minutes. I separated this into turns, please let me know if it's still confusing or if you see any bugs. This chapter's mostly just the duel, and a murder attempt.

* * *

Inside the factory was just large enough for a duel arena, I stood at one end of the room while Cyril stood shakily at the other, holding Kalin's deck. The poor kid was pale as a ghost, and shaking so much I was afraid he'd pass out half way through the duel. Kalin stood a few steps behind, just close enough to see Cyril's hand.

"Let's duel," Kalin and I said together, Cyril gritted his teeth together to keep them from clattering.

A ring of green flames, like those signaling the appearance of Disney villains, surrounded us.

Oh fudge.

The simple summary of a Shadow Duel is whoever loses, dies. And I'm about to duel a main character and his Infernity deck using a Chaos deck. To put things into perspective, Chaos decks were possible back in the original series, Infernity decks didn't appear till 5Ds and was still competitive in the XYZ era. Had I prepared for a Shadow Duel, I would have at least borrowed Galen's Red-Eyes Darkness Metal Dragon, or Vincent's Soul Release _(banished up to 5 monsters from opponent grave)_ and made a Dragon-Chaos or Monarch-Chaos deck. But no, I thought this was a duel for a small factory in an abandoned corner of the Satellite, so I'm using a deck that no lives should depend on.

I did have Black Luster Soldier- Envoy of the Beginning (3000/2500) which I won from Chaos last night, but that's essentially my only trump card.

"Sorry," I mouthed to Cyril. Had I known it was going to be like this, I wouldn't have involved him.

"Why don't you go first," Kalin said casually, "it might let you survive a little longer."

Kalin did admit to me later that he honestly thought dueling using somebody else would prevent the initiation of a Shadow Duel.

"Thanks," I didn't turn down the offer. My deck didn't have as much draw power as I would have liked, so the extra card from drawing first really would help. Plus, this was a Shadow duel where the loser dies! I was surprised I could even talk! Sure, when the Dark Signer arc ends, all souls return to their bodies, but that's 6 months from now! By then, half my flesh would have rotted off. I'm pretty sure as soon as the soul returns to my body, it would leave again.*

So it's me or him. So if Kalin was going to give me an advantage, I'll take it. It's too bad I probably won't get a chance to return the favor.

* * *

 **Turn 1, Yuki's turn. Yuki: 4000, Kalin:4000**

"I place one monster face-down, and two cards in the spell/trap card zone, that ends my turn." I looked with some relief at my hand. I didn't have great cards, I didn't _own_ many great cards, but I added many cards into my deck to specifically target Kalin's deck, looks like it's going to pay off.

"There's no need for you anymore," Kalin took back his own deck, then roughly shoved Cyril aside. The whitehead almost hit the flames, thankfully he was smart enough to drop to the ground so he didn't cross the edge of the circle.

"I, I want to join the duel," The Cyril said shakily. He had his own duel disk of course, and always keeps his deck on his person as was typical of the Satellite."  
"If I lose," I assured him, "you can continue the duel for me." Notice how I said 'continue the duel', rather than 'start another duel'. It was unfair to Kalin of course, but that really wasn't a concern for me at the moment. If somebody doesn't defeat the ex-leader of the Enforcers and current Dark Signer, I was going to die.

"Why not?" Kalin laughed, obviously understanding my implications, "two on one or one after the other, I'll send both of you to the Netherworld either way." I noticed the darkness in his eyes beginning to invade his pupils, black specks against the golden background gave his eyes an animalistic allure.

Sadly, that also meant he was going crazier.

 **Turn 2, Kalin's turn. Yuki: 4000, Kalin:4000**

"I summon," Kalin smiled maliciously, **"Infernity Archfiend (lv4, 1800/600)** , the ultimate soldier of darkness, in attack mode. Go my fiend, destroy his monster!"

My **Nova Summoner (1400/800)** was destroyed.

"My monster's special ability allows me to special summon another light attribute monster with 1500 attack or less onto the field when it's destroyed, so I'll bring forth a second **Nova Summoner** , in defense position." I said loudly to boost my own confidence.

"That wouldn't be enough to save you, I'm afraid." Kalin cackled. "I place three cards face down and end my turn."

 **Turn 3, Yuki's turn. Yuki: 4000, Kalin:4000**

That's odd. Most card effects in Infernity decks only work in the duelist had nothing in their hands, he ended his turn with two. Maybe I got lucky and he had a bad draw? Somehow I doubted that.

I'll do my best, and see what he has up his sleeve. I drew.

"I activate," Kalin announced happily in the shrill high note to which I had grown accustomed, "my trap card, Infernity Inferno, this card lets me discard up to two monsters from my deck to the graveyard, as long as I also discard the same number of monsters from my hand to the graveyard. So, I discard Infernity Necromancer (lv3, 0/2000) and Infernity General (lv7, 2700/1500) from my deck into the graveyard, and discard Infernity Avenger (lv1, tuner, 0/0) and Infernity Beetle (lv2, tuner, 1200/0) from my hand."

Infernities are known for using card effects to special summon numerous monsters from the graveyard, depending on what his facedown cards are, there're half a dozen ways he could deal 4000+ damage next turn.

"I summon, **Tour Guide of the Underworld (lv3, 1000/400)** , and use her special effect to special summon another level 3 fiend to the field, **Dark Resonator (lv3, tuner,1300/800)**. Now, I tune my two level 3 monsters to special summon, **Celestrial Wolf Lord, Blue Sirius (lv6, 2400/2500)** , in attack mode."

"Activate trap," Kalin flipped over one of his two remaining facedown cards, Black Horn of Heaven, which negates the special summon and destroys your summoned monster."

I gnawed on my lips. I should have seen that one coming. Being forced to lay my life on the line for a card game is really getting to me. I'm too young to die (I used to say that I was too pretty to die, but now with radioactive hair that looked like I cut it myself with a sharp rock and unwashed clothes I also slept in, I thought I'd change that motto a little).

"I play, Mystical Space Typhoon, this spell allows me to destroy one spell or trap card on your side of the field." I announced. That's why I was so upset over the loss of my synchro monster, I could've saved him it I played my hand properly.

His remaining facedown card was Infernity Barrier.

Worth it, I hid a smirk. I thought that would be one of his facedown traps, it's arguably the most important trap in an Infernity Deck, able to negate any card effect as long as there was an attack position Infernity monster on his side of the field.

 **Turn 4, Kalin's turn. Yuki: 4000, Kalin:4000**

"Enjoyed your turn? It's going to be your last" Kalin cackled, "I think I'll start with this," he placed the card he just drew onto the field, "Infernity Launcher. I send this card to my graveyard, in exchange, I can bring two Infernity monsters back onto the field. Come back to me, **Infernity Necromancer (lv3, 0/2000)** and **Infernity Beetle (lv2, tuner, 1200/0)**!"

Crap.

Infernity Necromancer can special summon another monster to the field, Infernity Beetle can tribute itself and special summon two more copies of itself from the deck, making five monsters and a ridiculous number of possible synchro summons.

"In that case," I forced a broad smile, "I activate my facedown trap, Shadow-Imprisoning Mirror. This continuous trap negates the effect of all dark-attribute monsters, on the field or in the graveyard." It might have been better if I activated this only when he activated a monster effect, but I was too nervous to wait. I needed to shut down Kalin's deck now.

The Chaos deck I use contains a combination of light and dark monsters, which means half of my monsters would have their effects negated as well, seriously slowing it down. But _all_ Infernity monsters are dark attribute, and an Infernity deck relies much more strongly on monster effects. So while my deck is hampered, his deck is crippled.

Remember, you don't have to be good, you just have to suck less than your opponent.

Cyril had taken up a position behind Kalin, in what I can only assume to be an attempt to look at Kalin's cards. Of course, that doesn't work so well when Kalin maintains an empty hand. He noticed Kalin's preparations for Synchro summoning also, and snuck up quietly behind Kalin, raising his own duel disk, with its sharp edges aimed at Kalin's head.

"No!" I blurted out, Cyril paused, looking at me curiously, his duel disk still hovering over Kalin's head.

Kalin paused also, for a moment looking less insane, "It's too late to stop now! Your trap is clever, Yuki, but it's not nearly enough. Prepare for your doom."

The scene was almost comical. I would have laughed if I wasn't part of it.

"… No… " I tried to cover up my outburst while frantically signaling for Cyril to stop his murder attempt without making Kalin too suspicious. It might also have looked like nervous eye twitches. "No! I won't let you win that easily. I _will_ defeat you. We're bringing hope to the Satellite and I'm not going to let you ruin that." Nice save, right? Despite the urgency of the situation, it took some effort to keep the grin off my face.

Cyril took the hint and backed off, and I can breathe again. Sure, Kalin has his problems, but he doesn't deserve to die! And a fractured skull isn't the 'can be magically restored' kind of death.

"I tune my level 2 Infernity Beetle, with my level 4 Infernity Archfiend. Beyond good and evil lies the eternal force, the power of life, the spirit of the warrior. Come forth, **Goyo Guardian (lv6, 2800/2000)**. Destroy her Nova Summoner."

"Using my Nova Summoner's effect, I special summon my third **Nova Summoner** to my side of the field."

"When Goyo Guardian destroys a monster, he takes control of that monster and bring it onto my side of the field in defense position." Kalin informed me haughtily. Goyo Guardian being forbidden in my reality, I had forgotten about that.

Sure enough, Kalin's Synchro warrior released chains from its hand, and grabbed my Nova Summoner out of my grave onto his field, towering over my pathetic-looking fairy, who was really just a floating wreath of flower with wings. The contrast was so drastic Cyril began to sneak up on Kalin again, only stopped by frantic shaking of my head.

"Just needed to clear my head," I explained sheepishly.

 **Turn 5, Yuki's turn. Yuki: 4000, Kalin:4000**

"I switch my Nova Summoner to attack mode, and equip to him United We Stand, which adds 800 to my monster's attack points for every monster on my field." Now that Kalin had no more traps on his field, I can execute this strategy. "Next, I'll activate my final facedown card, Scapegoat, which lets me special summon **4 scapegoat tokens** , each giving my fairy another 800 attack points, bringing my monster's attack to 5400! Now, Nova Summoner, destroy Goya Guardian."

While 2800 attack is not bad for an lv6 synchro monster, Goyo Guardian was completely obliterated and Kalin's LP dropped to 1400.

"I'll place two cards facedown and end my turn." I said proudly, feeling confident for the first time that I can survive through this.

 **Turn 6, Kalin's turn. Yuki: 4000, Kalin:1400**

I thought I saw something flash through Kalin's deck, when I looked again, it was gone. I attributed it to nerves and exhaustion.

"I play this," Kalin smirked, I noticed the darkness occupying more and more of his eyes, "Mystical Space Typhoon, to destroy your Shadow-Imprisoning Mirror.

Oops.

"Next, I use Infernity Necromancer's effect to special summon **Infernity Beetle** from my graveyard. Infernity Beetle's special ability allows me to tribute it and summon two more Infernity Beetles from my deck. Using one of my two level 2 tuner Infernity Beetle, my level 3 Infernity Necromancer, and _your_ level 4 Nova Summoner, I special summon **Mist Wurm (lv9, 2500/2500)** in attack mode. When Mist Wurm is synchro summoned, I get to return three cards from your side of the field to your hand, I think I'll remove both of your facedown traps, and your Nova Summoner."

I paused and did not activate Bottomless Trap Hole on my field. With 4 Scapegoats on the field, I should be able to last till next turn. It would be a waste to waste the trap on Mist Wurm, which doesn't have any effects except when summoned. Two trap cards and my Nova Summoner is added back to my hand, the equip spell United We Stand is sent to the graveyard.

"I banish Archfiend General from my graveyard," Kalin said, "to special summon **Infernity Necromancer** and **Infernity Beetle** again, with their effects negated. I tune my level 3 Infernity Necromancer with my level 2 tuner monster Infernity Beetle. Life is fleeting, light is temporary, in the end, only darkness shall remain. Come forth, **Ally of Justice Castor (lv5, 2200/1200)**."

The tiny colorful fuzz balls on my field trembled in fear, being stared down by three monsters and their insane master.

"Attack!" Kalin commanded. I had no traps on my side of the field, so three scapegoat tokens were destroyed.

 **Turn 7, Yuki's turn. Yuki: 4000, Kalin:1400**

Faced with two seemingly unbeatable monsters on my opponent's side (plus an Infernity Beetle), I didn't feel nearly as distraught as I had expected. This was bound to happen, Infernity decks are known for summoning up mass numbers of monsters in a single turn. I was prepared, more or less.

I drew again, now with 4 cards in my hand and nothing on my field. I had wished fervently for Black Luster Soldier, Envoy of the Beginning, the trump card in a Chaos deck, **D.D. Warrior Lady (lv4, light, 1500/1600** ) was the card added to my hand, that'll help I guess.

"I summon Nova Summoner, in attack mode." I decided, "And use him to attack your Infernity Beetle,"

Kalin's insect was vanquished, leaving him two hundred life points lower.

"Next, I place two cards face-down and end my turn," I announced.

In my reality, I wouldn't do that for fear of another Myst Wurm, which can return all three cards on my field to my hand. But in this world, duelists rarely kept more than one copy of a powerful card in their deck (mostly because they can't find another copy).

 **Turn 8, Kalin's turn. Yuki: 4000, Kalin:1100**

Kalin drew again and revealed the card to me.

"When I draw **Infernity Archfiend** when I have no other card in my hand, I can special summon it and add one Infernity card from my deck to my hand, I'll add a second copy of Infernity Launcher. By activating Infernity Launcher, I special summon **Infernity Necromancer (lv3)** and **Infernity Mirage (lv1, tuner, 0/0)** to the field."

That makes three Infernity monsters and two Synchro monsters, filling up all five monster slots on his side of the field

"Now, I tune lv3 Infernity Necromancer, Lv4 Infernity Archfiend and Lv1 Infernity Avenger. Through a path of fire and destruction, comes the ultimate darkness, the beast of magic and might. I synchro summon, **Ogre Void Dragon (lv8, 3000/3000)**."

"I activate Bottomless Trap Hole," I flipped over one of my two trap cards I laid down on the first turn.

"With my dragon's special ability, I negate your trap." Kalin replied proudly as my trap barely materialized before it was shattered by dragon fire.

I knew that of course, but his monster's effect can only be used once per turn.

"This is the end!" Kalin sneered, Together, my monsters have over 8000 attack, and all you have is that measly fairy. Its special ability wouldn't save you this time, you see, my Ally of Justice Castor has a special ability too. If a monster that battles this minion of darkness isn't dark attribute , that monster is automatically destroyed by card effect. And I believe the effect of your fairy is only activated if it's destroyed by battle."

"Now, Ally of Justice Castor, destroy his fairy!" Kalin ordered.

If he were to succeed, his remaining two Synchro monsters would be able to wipe me out this turn. Thankfully, or rather thanks to him, I was prepared.

"I activate my trap," I smirked a little guiltily, "Dimensional Prison." I didn't explain how it would banish the attacking monster, after all, he gave it to me just a day ago.

For the first time since I saw him, Kalin's face froze. It wasn't quite anger or resentment or regret, not quite lifeless yet, more of a 'resigned to being screwed by life' look. Yes, that's the card that was key in his destruction, even though he didn't know it yet.

"Ogre Void Dragon, destroy his fairy," Kalin ordered.

My fairy was obliterated in a blaze of dragon fire, dealing me 1600 damage in the process.

"I activate my monster's special ability. When he's destroyed, I can special summon another light fairy from my deck, so I'll summon **Shining Angel (lv4, 1400/800)** , in defense position!"

I had had a vague plan ever since after my first attack, now it's really beginning to solidify.

"No matter how many pathetically weak monsters you send onto the field, I'll destroy them one by one. Myst Wurm, destroy her fairy! There is no hope for you, only destruction and loss." Kalin announced.

"As you know," I began, "Shining Angel's effect allows me to bring a light monster with 1500 attack or less from my deck onto the field, and this time, I'll choose **Honest (lv4, 1200/1900)**."

Kalin breathed out heavily, his bloodless complexion growing a little paler, he's obviously aware of the effect of Honest. This fairy can be discarded when your light-attribute monster battles an opponent monster, your monster would gain attack equal to the opponent monster's attack. In other words, he'd be dealt damage equal to the attack of the attacking monster.

But that's the disadvantage of having an empty hand, there was nothing more he could do.

 **Turn 9, Yuki's turn. Yuki: 2400, Kalin:1100**

I drew again, it doesn't matter what I drew anymore, I could finish the duel right now.

"I activate Honest's special ability," I said slowly, "during my main phase, I can return this card from the field to my hand."

I scratched the back of my head, I _could_ finish the duel right now. I had D.D. Warrior Lady already in my hand, using it to attack either of Kalin's two monsters would deal him 1500 damage and finish the duel.

* * *

Half an hour ago, when I found myself in a Shadow duel, I was prepared to do the worst. But it didn't feel right that the card he gave me out of sheer goodwill was instrumental to defeating him in a duel to the death. Or maybe I'm just wimping out now that I'm faced with the immediate decision of whether or not to kill somebody.

The same dilemma I faced now faces him. If his soul were to be absorbed by, whatever it is, his body would rot in the next six months, or at die of dehydration/starvation/bladder explosion. The point is, he's not going to make it to the end of the Dark Signer arc.

I don't want to kill him because he's vital to the plot, I told myself. Yeah, that's why. He's one of the important villains in the beginning of this series. Killing him would change the plot, thus destroying one of the few advantages I have. Plus, it would antagonize Yusei and attract Roman Goodwin's attention. Balancing the pros and cons, it's just not a rewarding decision.

If only there was another way... My eyes travelled to Cyril, still standing behind Kalin, watching the duel intently.

"You don't have another light monster in your hand!" Kalin laughed that now-characteristic shrill laugh of his, seeing my obvious consternation.

"I'm going to win this duel," I replied passionately, cleverly (or so I thought) evading his question, buying time while I try to catch Cyril's eyes. The whitehead immediately noticed it, and looked at me questioningly. I raised my left arm with my duel disk above my head, waving my fist above my head, "I _will_ win this duel, Kalin. I trust in the Heart of the Cards, and I'm sure they will reward me with victory."

In my defense, it was the first line that came to mind.

Cyril nodded knowingly, aiming first the sharp edge at Kalin's head, then when I rotated my arm around frantically, he switched to the duller edge reluctantly.

And struck.

And completely missed.

Kalin, the 3-D rendition I thought was Kalin, disappeared. The real blue-haired duelist appeared less than a foot away, close enough to grab Cyril's arm and punch him hard in the stomach.

"You don't honestly think you could sneak something like that past me, did you?" Kalin taunted, holding a Cyril up by the front of his shirt with his left hand. I looked worriedly at the whitehaired teen, who had stopped struggling. "I _told_ you I was a Dark Signer, I control the power of Darkness. I can see all! And I decide what you see, and what you don't see."

Right, Kalin's Dark Signer power was illusion. Forgot about that. His powers, as Kalin later shared after one too many drinks, allowed him to see everything around him, and control what everybody else sees around him, in a 10 meter radius, as long as there're no obstacles in the way.

"Now, let's see what we can do with your pathetic hand this turn, so I can finish this duel." Kalin waved his free left hand and a mirror appeared behind me, showing him the two cards in my hand. Kalin stared blankly, "the effect of Honest, do you know it?"

"Um… " I hesitated, not sure whether to tell the truth, "No?"

Not knowing what's going on but seeing Kalin's distraction as an opportunity, Cyril punched Kalin across the jaw, which caused the Dark Signer to bend over in pain, allowing Cyril to free his left hand and bash Kalin on the head with his duel disk. Kalin promptly collapsed on the floor unconscious. Whatever else his magic granted him, the ability to take a hit was not one of them.

"We did it!" Cyril said with a smile.

"Thanks," I smiled back as the green ring of flames surrounding the duel began to dissipate. I knew there was more than one way to win a duel.

* * *

* That's not what really happens when losing a Shadow duel, but I forgot when writing this chapter so Yuki forgot too. XD

 **A/N:** A large number of problems in this series could be solved by bashing the right person on the head.

 **A/N 2:** In case you don't remember, Dimensional Prison was the card Kalin gave Yuki in the second chapter. Btws, Kalin's not dead. I worry it might get comical how many times I might have to repeat that statement.

 **Regarding the duel:**

I know Goyo Guardian is banned, but it made repeated appearances in the show, so I unbanned it.

Infernity decks is one of the few decks that was made more powerful when printed in reality (except for the associated synchro monsters of course), so I made Infernity Launcher semi-limited.

Infernity Archfiend's effect in the anime only allows it to add a Infernity card to the hand when it's special summoned by its own effect (rather than any special summon), that's why Infernity Necromancer revived Infernity Beetle instead.

There's actually a bug in the duel, but nobody's pointed it out yet, so I'm going to pretend it doesn't exist for now.


	9. Cleaning up and Food

**Disclaimer:** I do not own YGO 5Ds

 **A/N:** Yusei's crew member Rally was misnamed as Reggie, in case you read earlier chapters before I made the correction.

The bug in the duel from the last chapter has been fixed. If you didn't notice, ignore this message.

* * *

"What do we do with the body?" Cyril asked casually like he's done this before. Considering he just knocked out somebody with substantial magical powers, he might have. Remind me to never piss him off.

And what did he mean body?

I rushed up to Kalin's prostrate form on the ground. The hit to the head by a duel disk left a large gash on the right side of his forehead (Cyril used the sharp edge of his duel disk after all), a small pool of blood quickly collected on the ground, and was as quickly soaked up by the dirt, leaving only a dark irregular stain.

What happened to emerging unscathed from any physical injury, including but not limited to numerous motorcycle accidents?

#HelpIThinkIAccidentallyOrderedAMurder

#HowToStopaBleed

I bent down to take a closer look, I don't think I see bone, and he was breathing fairly regularly, that's a good sign, right? And I think sharp weapons cause less internal damage, so Kalin shouldn't have too many injuries I can't see. I definitely hoped so, because there was nothing I could do. I think I mentioned that there was no healthcare system in the Satellite. The few doctors left were stuck here from pre-Zero Reverse, and happened to survive the past decade and a half. So probably numbering in the double digits now (for a city of half a million people), living underground, seeing only those they trusted to avoid being captured by a gang (admittedly, a gang like mine).

"Kalin!" I slapped his face, squeezed his fingers, and pinched his earlobes, getting absolutely no response.

"You take the feet, I'll grab the head," Cyril said decisively, "Do you want him inside or out?"

"Inside!" I choked, correctly assessing 'outside' to be under the soil outside. "Definitely inside! We're gonna have to hide him from, everybody, for now." Until I can figure out what to do with him, and hopefully not his corpse.

Given Cyril's casual attitude to Kalin's current condition, I was hesitant to reveal the situation to the rest of the Magicians. Let's be honest, I don't _actually_ have control over any of these people, they're working for me because it's in their best interest for the time being. Their interest in a dead Kalin Kessler may far exceed their interest in our little establishment. I don't want Vincent to 'accidentally' break Kalin's skull.

Cyril lifted Kalin up at the shoulders (after I stopped the white-haired teen from dragging the unconscious Dark Signer on the ground by his head) and I carried the feet, hiding him in a storage shed near the entrance of the house. Cyril took the chance to open all the doors and let the smell of blood disperse. I grabbed a bottle of grease and poured it liberally onto the ground, using the darker oil stains to disguise blood stains.

It's all I can do in the limited timeframe. As first an antagonist, and then an antihero protagonist in a series filled with motorized vehicle accidents, I was optimistic that Kalin would recover on his own.

…

"Yuki," Chaos was the first one to stream back in after I sent Cyril to give the okay-signal, "great news, we had our first sales order," He completely skipped over my instructions for evacuation. I told Cyril to be as vague as possible, hint at something personal and say no more. I think it's working.

Vincent squeezed past me with a glare, Teddy followed him closely, not looking at me at all, muttering a 'no thanks to you' as he passed. Or there may still be some resentment.

"We ran into Blizzard when we left," Felice explained with a broad smile, motioning to a few non-motorized vehicles that looked suspiciously similar to Nervin's tricycle, all filled with cartons bearing the standard Sector logos, "he hooked us up with a couple of people from Sector Security, so we managed to sell most of what we made so far. We have enough supplies to last a month!"

"That may still be a little early to say…" Nervin interrupted, looking like he wanted to say something.

"Oh, and I gave Blizzard a cut," Chaos mentioned, "I hope you don't mind."

"Not at all," I replied, it's only standard business practice, "where is Blizzard anyways?"

"Blizzard can't make it, because Nervin strongly hinted that he shouldn't" Chaos said looking at Nervin, who coughed quietly. "But he did get you some new outfits as a gift."

I looked at him questioningly, wondering why he brought that up. There're obviously much more important issues than my attire at the moment.

"It was his idea, but I thought a dress might not hurt," Chaos replied with a mischievous grin, "after Blizzard asked me if you wore boxers or briefs."

My eyes slowly widened as I understood him.

"Can you blame him?" Felice dealt the finishing blow, "even we had to confirm with Galen."

"Just because my breasts haven't come in yet," I took the offered garments from Chaos with a mock pout.

"Now that that's out of the way," Nervin dragged me inside impatiently, "stop blocking the door and let me show you why we don't have time to deal with Blizzard at the moment."

My heart skipped a beat, there's no way he found out about Kalin already, is there?

"The water generator," Nervin said with finality, "the machine I was creating before you forced Chaos to kick all of us out. It's done."

I stopped in surprise. I thought the design alone would take weeks.

"I tested it out with scraps I found while we're out. This is only a prototype of course, but I don't see why it shouldn't work for the general public. Even Chaos can build it correctly."

The much bigger purple-haired man took the jab with a good-natured smile. "I still don't know what you had me build."

For a fleeting second, I thought he had looked distracted when he followed me inside, examining the room with a disconcerting vigilance.

"Upstairs," I laughed, putting Chaos out of my mind for now, "all of you! We have good news."

"I'll stay downstairs and keep an eye on things," Galen offered referring to the teenagers unloading our gross revenues (of instant foods) and getting back to work. "Nervin already told me it worked."

"I'm sure it'll be fine downstairs," I shook my head, "Come on."

We haven't yet told the Magicians about our attempt to collecting freshwater for the Satellite.

As an island, Satellite fresh water comes almost solely from the factories, located sparsely at the edges closest to Domino City. Machines to provide readily accessible freshwater to all of Satellite would not only be convenient for its residents, but also drastically reduce Neo Domino's control over the area, and I wasn't certain as to Domino government's reaction to such a situation. Nor did I know where Vincent stands on this issue, facing the possible threat from the City. So I'd rather have an extra ally in the room.

* * *

His older brother is no longer the paragon of perfection he had been during their youth, Rex Goodwin decided with a hint of melancholy, oh how the mighty has fallen.

Roman's descent from grace had begun when he gave up his own arm, and with it the mark of the Crimson Dragon. Roman had jumped off his pedestal that day, into the dark swamp of daily drudgery and mortality of which Roman now believed himself to be a part. In serving his Dark King, Roman had long lost sight of the bigger picture, limiting himself to operating in the Shadows, to underhanded tactics when legal approaches would obviously be so much more convenient.

Then again, otherwise, he couldn't possibly have pulled one over his big brother.

Rex smiled sardonically, downing the shot of vodka he had been nursing and poured himself another. It was one of the few distractions he allowed himself, and after witnessing Roman's abject fall from grace, to a point where even his humble self had become intellectually superior to his older brother, a distraction was what he needed.

He sat in his office in Domino Tower, in front of the giant window facing the Satellite, and raised a glass to everything his brother had been.

The younger Goodwin had just returned from the Satellite, where he learned the Dark Signers' fruitless search for disturbances within the Satellite, and easily distracted Roman from the specifics of the Crimson Dragon's condition, something he did not yet know, as Jack's mark hadn't awakened yet. What bothered him was Roman's request for help in locating, within the confines of the Satellite, the cause of that Netherworld Demon's surge in strength. Roman pronounced it like an order, of course, but it was an appeal for help, something he'd never thought he'd hear from his big brother.

Rex Goodwin was remarkable in every respect, to any casual observer or intimate friend (if he had any), but Roman Goodwin had always been better.

While Roman was hired by Professor Fudo on his own merit, Rex was introduced.

While Roman was selected by the powers of both Light and Dark, Rex could only take his brother's hand-me-downs.

Roman, upon recognition of his slow decline into the Shadows, had immediately and methodically cut off his own arm, denying himself a source of near-infinite powers, while ensuring the entire limb was preserved for the Crimson Dragon's powers to remain intact when Rex received it, so the side of Light might have a fighting chance in the Final Battle. Rex Goodwin had taken eight shots of vodka and sawed off his own arm in a drunken rage.*

That's why it hurt to see his brother reduced to leading sewer rats in the gutters of the Satellite.

Rex Goodwin had been certain, within 4 hours of receiving news, that nothing out of the extraordinary had occurred in Neo Domino, yet his brother still did not have the same degree of control over the Satellite, or even sufficient control within his own organization to send out the necessary spiders without raising suspicion. Now, even control of the Satellite would be conceded to the younger Goodwin. Or perhaps that was part of Roman's plan all along, he _had_ left Rex the path of Light while he himself sank deeper and deeper into the Darkness.

But why oh why, brother mine, did you think I could resist the temptations when even you had failed?

Rex Goodwin finished another shot, enjoying the temporary relaxation and amnesia granted by his intoxication.

Roman's problem is that he could never dream big enough, Rex Goodwin concluded. As Roman's ambitions shriveled up, so did his goals and ability, and that's why one day Rex Goodwin would control power far surpassing Roman's wildest dreams. Nazca, Yliaster, none of that would matter, once Rex Goodwin has optimized the world.

So now, Rex Goodwin decided with the help of alcohol, even his most useless lackey controls more resources than his older brother.

"Lazar," Rex pushed the speed-dial on his telecom, his Vice-Director's face appeared promptly on the screen.

"Yes Director Goodwin," Lazar was proving to be much more competent during daylight hours.

"Send your best men to the Satellite, I want to know every change that's happened in the past 72 hours." Goodwin commanded succinctly.

"Yes, Director Goodwin," Lazar did not question his boss's decision again. A little odd, sure, but at least this would be easier to gloss over with Tokyo.

* * *

"Tonight, we feast!" Vincent announced proudly, his long red hair bouncing up-and-down, bringing out a tray with plastic bowls. I guess I can't expect fine cutlery here.

"It's a day worth celebrating." Felice concurred, looking up with a broad smile.

"Yeah!" Teddy jumped onto the chair, Galen pulled him down before he jumped onto the table. The two promptly got into a scuffle.

The meeting had went far better than I expected, Vincent had at least acted excited about Nervin's newest invention. I had tasked him, as well as Galen and myself, with distributing the blueprints (printed on plastic because paper's too expensive) of our modified dehumidifier to the Satellite. This way, I don't need to worry about his loyalties. If Neo Domino or Tokyo did decide to end our little venture, Vincent would be deemed an insurgent like the rest of us- there's no turning back for him anymore.

I was also excited, if for different reasons. I had tried the Satellite rations for sustenance this morning. One ticket gets you a single slab of something that resembled cookie dough, roughly the size of my hand.

The Magicians, being experienced, cut theirs into bite sizes and swallowed each one whole. I licked it tentatively, tasting a near-toxic mixture of salt, sugar and charcoal. So, being the genius I am, I bit into it.

The best way I could describe it is the taste of the inside of an AA battery (Don't ask how I know that). The acid almost burnt my tongue and gums, providing pain rather than flavor.

So I was looking forward to a real meal.

"Yuki-sama," Cyril led me to the head of the table. Personally, I've always thought it was the worst seat, you're so far away from all the food. But it's a ceremonial thing, I get it. Of course, I didn't realize that I didn't have to worry about not being able to reach any dishes, as there wouldn't be any.

As we sat down, Cyril set the placemats, I was stunned by the food placed in front of me.

What I thought were utensils were actually instant noodles that come in their own bowls. And it's not the amazing, delicious-looking anime ramen deserving of background music and pink flowers, (despite my insistence that this is an anime world). This is the soggy mess you make at 3am in college dorms because you're hungry from staying up all night because falling asleep meant having to face another day when you wake up.

Didn't they say the plastics of those bowls melt off and give you cancer or something?

Vincent, sitting at my right hand, passed me a kettle with boiling water, temporarily distracting me from my musings of hatred over all instant food. Struggling to hide the grimace on my face, I poured some into the noodles and added seasoning. Having been to college and lived alone and lazy, I had gotten tired of instant noodles, and indeed any ready-made foods, a very long time ago, though I would admit, some of the Asian brands actually were better than my own cooking.

I passed the kettle down, observing curiously at it was passed along in some sort of invisible hierarchy.

"Let's eat!" Teddy said eagerly, I noticed Felice jabbing him gently in the ribs.

"Let's eat," I agreed, digging in. The rest of the table followed suit.

I should mention that I've had the misfortune of trying a vegan hotdog from a vendor stand. I was curious, a curiosity for which I paid dearly.

That was the single worst thing I had ever eaten in my life. No amount of mustard or relish could mask that distinct gasoline-on-plastic flavor, it's how I imagine burnt rubber tires recycled from old shoes taste like. Maybe it was an anomaly, I wouldn't know because the experience was enough to turn me away from all vegan variants of things that should be made of meat. I emphasize the vegan hotdog because it's roughly equivalent in flavor to what I was putting into my mouth.

I mentioned I didn't like instant food, but this was something else.

The noodles didn't have the taste typically associated with, well, food. Aside from cheap condiments, the noodles tasted more like a broken multiple-vitamin pill (if you haven't tried it, try it) ground up, mixed with engine grease and what you threw-up in your mouth. Even my own metaphors were beginning to disgust me, as I tried my very hardest to swallow a little more, knowing that my body needed food.

"Eating this is actually making you miserable, isn't it?" Vincent asked, his expression a mix of awe and jealous resentment, "You spoiled little son of a bit-!"

"Vincent!" Chaos cut him off harshly.

"My apologies," Vincent rolled his eyes, "I meant to say spoiled little..."

"Bitch." Felice finished for him with a wink in my direction.

"I'm not spoiled." I said emphatically. I really wasn't spoiled, at least I didn't think so. I change my own tires (that one time when I was desperate, but it still counts), fix my own plumbing (with duct tape), and had once ate a sandwich that was just two slices of bread (because I woke up late that morning and didn't have time to make anything else). Overall, I've always thought that I could tough it out better than most people in I know.

Yet, accustomed to a society of (however relative) opulence, my body strictly rejected the idea of keeping this food down. Each bite was agony. On the plus side, I discovered that there're indeed fewer bitter taste receptors on the front of the tongue, so if the noodles only touch the tip of my tongue, it only tastes sour and painful (as opposed to sour, bitter and painful).

At least the soup was edible, it was really grease (again, tasted like engine grease) mixed with salt and MSG, but I wasn't in a state where I could afford to be picky. The most appetizing part of that ramen was the unseasoned, partially rehydrated cabbage.

"Hey, you gonna finish that?" Teddy looked greedily at me poking the now-soggy mess with my chopsticks.

"Not at all," I pushed my bowl away, "I think I'm good." Yes I'm 4'8", yes lack of food might mean that I would stay this height forever, but it was a sacrifice I was willing to make. Teddy took it as an invitation and wolfed down the leftovers before I could stop him. No picky eaters here, they're actively selected against due to the lack of food.

"Yuki, are you okay?" Galen looked at me, a little worried.

'I'm fine," I managed. I'm really not fine, I was still really hungry, I think I'll grab a bit more of that toxic battery acid stuff later. The rest of the table all devoured their food in silence while I reminisced of better days with unlimited chocolate and vowed never to insult fast food again should I get out of this place.

Soon, I decided. Fortune Cup occurred roughly two years after the Enforcers disbanded, that's like 6 months from now, and the Dark Signer arc followed soon after. Once the Daedalus Bridge is rebuilt, I can leave Satellite freely. Of course, the Magicians, Nervin and Chaos might want to rebuild this dump, so they can keep whatever we managed to create, and I can move on to better things. Everybody wins.

* * *

 **A/N:** _Congratulations, you've acquired- dress x1, jacket x1, pants x1, underwear x2, continue?_

* I know in the anime, Rex Goodwin said he lost his arm in the motorcycle crash but I always thought it was weird that nobody else seems to know about it. Imagine you're the hospital in Domino that amputated the arm of a half-dying man, and then you see him on TV as the Director of the city, you'd be like, hey, we treated that guy, so he's using a robotic arm now? Nice! So it should be more or less public knowledge. Instead, it would be much more likely to be discreet if he did it himself. I sort of imagine Rex Goodwin would tell Crow he lost his arm in the crash to make himself seem more heroic, I always thought that Rex wanted to be the hero.

And did I mention that _Roman cut off his own arm?_ He cut off his own arm! 4Kids really didn't give that the attention/credit it deserved.

I can say with good authority that the inside of batteries really just taste like acid.


	10. Discoveries

**Disclaimer:** I do not own YGO 5Ds

* * *

"How did it go?" Yusei greeted his friends with a smile as they climbed down the stairs a few hours after sunset, "did you find him?"

Rally hang his head. Tank and Blitz quickly exchanged a look between them, "We'll try again tomorrow," Blitz said. Technically, he reminded himself, he was not lying.

"How is the runner coming along?" Tank changed the subject. They had a pretty good idea of Nervin's whereabouts, but approaching the Magicians now that Yusei was alone may be dangerous. Duel gangs in general are not overly fond of ex-Enforcers. Rally doesn't know of course, that kid is too young to keep secrets from his hero.

"It was a good haul," Yusei motioned to the mosaic of metallic pieces in front of him, "there were a few damaged runners and I was able to get enough parts between them."

"Wait, does that mean?" Tank looked at Yusei expectantly.

"Does that mean you can complete the duel runner now?" Blitz finished the question for him.

"I think so," Yusei replied with a smile, "it should only be a couple more days."

"That means you can finally go to Domino City! And win back your card from Jack!" Rally said almost jumping with excitement.

"Yeah," Yusei looked off into the darkness of the tunnels _. Just you wait Jack, I'm coming for you._

Rex Goodwin shut off the monitor on his desk with a click. He couldn't get an audio feed but he could read lips reasonably well. Looks like it wouldn't be long now before the clash of the Signers. Jack still requires a little extra training, but of course, Yusei wouldn't make it anywhere near Domino City except under his plan.

* * *

I waited until almost midnight before sneaking downstairs to bring Kalin some food, optimistic that he was still alive and well.

And that's when reality caught up with me.

In the past year and a half, Kalin had been locked in a cell, his spirits crushed, until he literally starved to death. After his rescue and revival, he was used as a vessel and energy source for a powerful monster of evil. As can be expected, he's not at his prime physical condition. That, coupled with poor diet from living underground in the Satellite (even Dark Signers have to eat), the cold from staying in our storage shed, external injuries, lack of sanitization of said injuries, and massive blood loss, he wasn't doing very well. The wound looked infected, and he was running a serious fever. Normally, we'd find doctors to prescribe some broad spectrum antibiotics to prevent the infection from spreading to the brain and call it a day. We didn't have doctors, nor did we have antibiotics.

I sat down next to Kalin's bed with a cold bowl of sterile water (now available thanks Nervin's modified dehumidifier) and placed the cold compress on his forehead. The blood on his wound had long stopped bleeding, and I made the mistake of carefully wiping the caked blood off his face, revealing pale but still handsome features underneath the gory exterior.

It was a mistake because I had underestimated the instincts of people who survived the streets of the Satellite.

"Chaos! What are you doing here?" I looked up at the creaking of the door to see Chaos walking in with what looked suspiciously like a gun.

"I saw the bloodstains when I came in. Cyril was very vague about what happened," the purple haired duelist explained, "so I got a little worried and followed you."

Darn it. In my defense, disguising bloodstains not exactly a skill one would normally acquire in a civilized society. I stood up so I was blocking Kalin's face.

"Right, umm, no, I'm fine. See? No threats here. Just, you know, well, it's a more, personal, right, personal problem," I'm becoming an accomplished liar, but I still have a lot of room for improvement, "so I'd rather not involve you guys. I'll take care of it." I said so reassuringly I almost convinced myself. I walked up and turned him around, pushing him towards the door, "I'll handle it, just give me a bit of time."

What I had forgotten was the height difference. You see, I'm not used to being this short. Being the height of Yugi Mutou, I was around 4'8", barely the lower border of a healthy height for a 13 year-old girl. Chaos was 7'1", meaning as I moved closer to him, I could block less and less of what was behind me, revealing the man lying face-up on the bed/table.

"You're harboring Kalin Kessler?" Chaos saw Kalin's face and recognized the bane of Satellite duel gangs immediately. He grabbed me aside, doing his best to keep his voice at a whisper. "What are you thinking? That's Kalin Kessler!"

"Harboring is such an ugly word," I said weakly, "I'm giving him a place to rest until he wakes up. Just make sure nobody else knows about this, okay?"

"You can't keep him here," Chaos said as though talking about a vicious racoon I'm trying to take in as a house pet. "It's far too dangerous."

"He's not dangerous," I lied convincingly, "he's delusional, but not that dangerous anymore." I took away Kalin's deck and duel disk, so I hoped what I said was true.

"I'm talking about the Sector!" Chao replied in a hushed whisper, "You think they wouldn't at least nose around here after we hand out the water generator designs? With Kessler here, we might as well all take a bus to the Facilities."

"He wouldn't survive if we tossed him out now!" I defended my decision.

"Do you know what's going to happen once Domino finds out?" Chaos raged, his normally tranquil emerald blue eyes now looking like an ocean storm. I cowered, I've never seen him like this. "Are you ready to rot in a cell and never see the light of day? Or have the City brand all of the kids we just hired?"

I stuttered as the very real threat of death and imprisonment washed over me, my instincts of self-preservation battling my sense of morality. Kalin had died in the Facilities, I don't think I'd be lucky enough to be saved by a Dark Signer too.

"I can't just let him die..." I argued even as I felt my resolve wavering.

"Why not?" Chaos pressed.

"I-"I hesitated. It was perhaps a very rudimentary idea of morality kicking in, or just the simple fear of another human dying by my hands. Plus, he does play a minor role in the plot, and I've been trying to avoid disrupting the continuity of this timeline. That's it, I convinced myself, for the sake of continuity. "He plays a role the grand scheme of things," I finally said, deciding 'fate of the world' sounded too wishy-washy.

"Let me take him then." Chaos said rather than asked. "It's too dangerous to keep him here, it could ruin everything if he's found." I was glad he didn't question me on the equally flaky 'grand scheme of things' premise.

"Where are you taking him to?" I asked, suspicious Chaos might dump the younger man into a ditch somewhere.

"Let me worry about that." Chaos answered, "If you say he's important, I'll find him a doctor and keep him alive. Other than that, the less you know, the better."

"…" I was at a loss for words. With all the Security around, getting Kalin safely to a doctor was fairly unlikely, the alternative being permanent bed and board on Domino City budget. "Chaos, are you sure you want to do this?"

"It's too dangerous for you with him here, I can't let you put yourself at risk like this." Chaos grabbed my arm, his blue eyes fixated on me like he was trying to penetrate my soul.

I blushed and looked away, embarrassed at the frank display of emotion, unsure what he meant.

"Since Zero Reverse 17 years ago," Chaos noticed my discomfort and let go, flashing me a forlorn smile, "I've spent the first dozen years trying to make life better for myself, and the last couple of years trying to make life better for other people. I've seen heroes come and go, villains rise and fall, only the Satellite stayed exactly the same."

And it would, the problem with this place is far more fundamental than what a single person could fix, it was restricted in practically every way possible, population, migration, education, resources, production, transportation, even communication. Frankly, the Satellite didn't need a hero, it needed a (half-decent) government, and that takes a lot more than spunk and guts.

"You have something here, Yuki. It's only been days since you started, but you may have done more fixing up this city than most of us in the past decade." Seeing that I obviously didn't look convinced, he continued, "There're a lot of people in the Satellite, good people. We had people who pleaded with Domino to help us, we have people who steal from the rich and give to the poor, we even have top duelists who might just escape this place." He paused and laughed quietly, "I've been all three and more. But what you created might be the only chance for everybody in the Satellite, a chance for the average person, that if they're willing to work hard, they can get ahead. If we lose you, I don't know if we'll ever get that again."

I nodded, beginning to understand him. Essentially, Satellite needs to achieve economic self-sufficiency, not exactly the forte of teenage anime heroes.

"When I heard Nervin today, I knew you may actually have a chance in this fight against Domino City. So I have to go. I have to get Kessler out of here. Satellite would do fine without me, but it can't afford to lose you."

"B-but, if you go," I sputtered as the realization finally hit me, he has a better chance of not making it out alive than the other way around, "What if you don't come back?"

"Then I don't come back." He replied candidly. "Think of all the lives in the Satellite you have already changed, think of all the lives you will change." Chaos smiled broadly, without even a hint of unease, "It's been a while since I've seen anybody with a vision for this town, this _entire_ town, instead of trying to escape the hellhole it is. Maybe a smarter man can find a way out of this, I'm not that man. I can only do whatever it takes to protect you, this thing you started, it might be the only chance this town has."

"Why me?" I studied him skeptically, gathering my wits about me. "We met yesterday, literally. You know nothing about me."

"I don't," Chaos admitted, "And I don't know if you will change the Satellite for the better, I probably never will. I was never a good judge of character." His smile was downright depressing, "But this is a chance. Opportunities don't come along often in the Satellite, so if you see one, you snatch it before it's gone.

I scratched my head, feeling a little embarrassed. I've never been called an 'opportunity' before, I kind of like it.

"You've pointed out a way for the Satellite to get out of this mess, Yuki-sama." Chaos got down on one knee, pressing his forehead to my hand as though praying to a god I couldn't see, "And I would gladly pave that road with my bones."

I backed off instinctively at his gesture and the horrific imagery. Chaos got up and stepped past me.

He refused to let me touch anything as he cleaned up any evidence of Kalin's visit, going as far as grabbing a shovel to dig up all the blood stains on the ground, putting the dirt into a separate bag and smoothing to ground over.

"Here," I took out my (his) deck, "I fixed it up a little, hope it helps."

"Best of luck, Yuki-sama." Chaos took the deck in one hand, carrying Kalin with the other, and set the unconscious man onto his electric scooter with the tools and dirt he gathered containing all traces of Kalin Kessler. "The fate of this town is in your hands."

I watched as he rode off silently into the night (electric vehicles are much quieter than their gas-powered counterparts), risking his life to save a man he didn't remotely like because of a whim of mine.

I guess I'll won't be leaving the Satellite in quite a while.

Darn it.

* * *

"Yes Director Goodwin," Lazar stood at attention in front of the telecom, the digital display showing a large 1:01AM. "This inspection of the Satellite is going well, we have several leads. In fact, I'll be going over to pursue one of them myself first thing tomorrow morning. Yes Director. Of course Director Goodwin. I'll report to you as soon as I hear anything."

And get a little revenge of his own in the process _._ Lazar sneered down at the picture of the tall redhead on his desk, taken that morning when he was blatantly selling Satellite goods to Sector Security, with that idiotic smile plastered on his face as he received ramen as payment from Sector officers.

Lazar had started off in Neo Domino the old fashioned way, climbing the ranks through flattery, deceit and whatever else necessary. So it wasn't too long ago that he was a junior field analyst sent regularly to the Satellite, where he was equally regularly robbed by Vincent and his savage crew, all teenagers then, but still a full head taller than him. They called it robbing from the rich, when his salary would barely put food on the table without the repeated mishaps he had to pay out of his own pockets.

Now he has the perfect excuse to get what he was owed. Well, what goes around comes around.

Moving up the totem pole has its perks.

* * *

 **A/N:** Goodwin obviously has cameras where Yusei lived (disturbing much?), remember that very well-placed photo he used to threaten Yusei?

Read and review? I'm not good at this sentimental stuff and I'm trying to round out Chaos as a character, not sure if it's working.


	11. The Arrest

**Disclaimer** : I do not own YGO 5ds.

* * *

The next morning saw us standing around a workbench discussing the new Murray WG (yes, Nervin named it after himself. He did offer to name it after me, but I can't exactly use my real name, so there was no point).

"Where's Chaos?" Galen asked curiously.

"He had some personal stuff to take care of," I evaded the question best I could, "we'll do this one without him."

"Right," Vincent agreed, and turned to Galen "I'll take the northern districts and you take the south. Shouldn't take more than a day to get the information out there."

"I'll go with Galen," I offered, I didn't know the Satellite at all so I thought I'd take the chance to familiarize myself with my surroundings.

"Should we divert productions from the radios now?" Galen asked, gesturing towards the production area (which had been moved to the back of the house on the grounds that it hurts me to look at it) where Cyril and Nervin was barely keeping everything on track.

"Not yet," I replied, "after we recruit a couple more people. Oh, and don't forget today to recruit more people."

Vincent nodded, "That shouldn't be a problem. Where's Teddy? I'll take him with me, he'd love this."

Galen tried to snigger quietly and failed, finally burst out laughing.

"They had a bet, Teddy lost, so now he has to babysit all the kids," I explained.

Vincent winced. 'All the kids' includes 6 kids ranging from 3-12, I felt almost guilty leaving it to Teddy but I was really glad I wasn't stuck with it.

…

The loud banging of the door distracted us from our conversation. The poorly fitted plastic door (large pieces of plastic was easier to get than wood or metal) was knocked down with one swift kick.

"Vincent Ulrich, you're under arrest for solicitations on Sector property. Come with us immediately, any resistance on your part may be recorded and used against you in a court of law," The sector security officer was interrupted by my loud ill-timed laughter. I know what they meant, I had considered the risks of selling Satellite goods to Sector officers but…

Unlike most people in this city, I have a much more colorful imagination, which is now imagining Vincent in some very well-fitted shorts and exaggerated make-up talking up several officers in uniform.

Exaggerated make-up like- I looked at the clown who just walked in, -like that! The Magicians had dressed like circus folk before I met them, but this, _this_ is the clown.

"Sorry Yuki," Vincent paled when he recognized Lazar walking in, "you know, I had assumed that you'd be the one to get all of us locked up one day, didn't think it'd be me."

"What do you mean?"

"We had some run-ins with this little piece of trash back in the day," Vincent admitted.

"But Vincent, I'm an official member of the Domino City government, I do not play favorites," Lazar protested mockingly in a tone unnaturally high even for him. "I'm here today because we have clear evidence of you loitering on Sector property and soliciting Neo Domino City residents. We can't have that. It's just my good luck that I get to send you away for quite some time."

"That's bullshit and you know it!" Vincent exploded, "if the satellite can't sell to Neo Domino, half the people in this town would have starved to death.

"Well, half the people in this town didn't get caught, but I'm afraid you did," Lazar walked up and tapped Vincent on the chest. The incensed redhead gripped Lazar's hand and pushed him aside. The surrounding security immediately lifted their guns (?) in alarm.

"Selling to Neo Domino a grey area," Galen whispers in my ear, "technically it's not illegal, but approaching somebody from Neo Domino first is considered as harassment or solicitation by the Sector. So if they want to throw you into the Facilities but can't pin anything on you, this is usually it."

Vincent clenched his teeth but didn't resist as, still with guns trained on him, two Sector guards grabbed his arms.

"Forgive my colleague, Director Lazar," I put an arm around Lazar's shoulder (which I can do because we're almost the same height) omitting the 'vice' from his title, "May I have a word. Vincent's just not familiar with dealing with famous men like yourself."

I was in the mood for a direct approach today but I would need to speak with him privately for it to work.

Lazar drew himself up, "of course, punks like him wouldn't know what to do with greatness if they saw it. But that doesn't mean I can acquit him of these charges. He is, after all, under arrest for solicitation on Sector property. We have more than adequate proof to arrest this satellite, flattery will get you nowhere."

"Oh I assure you, this isn't flattery at all," I replied genuinely, smiling a mirthless smile as I led him away from the crowd and lowered my voice, "you _are_ a _very_ famous man Vice Director Lazar, so famous, for example, that I know your wife has the prettiest pink hair styled exactly like yours."

Why, I can't imagine. It's not even a good look for him and simply disastrous for a member of the fairer sex.

"What are you trying to say?" Lazar asked, beginning to catch on.

"And because of your fame, I also know," I continued, closing my eyes trying to recall the anime, "that your son looks simply _adorable_ in that blue jacket and red bowtie. He's about, this tall?" I placed my right hand chest high, "though I _have_ wondered, why does he had brown hair?"

I have honestly wondered that. Lazar had purple hair and his wife has pink hair, both of which are recessive traits whereas brown hair is a dominant trait... The genetics doesn't add up. But since this is a children's anime, I'll chalk it up as a mutation.

"What, what are you implying?" Lazar demanded vehemently.

"I'm merely suggesting," I flashed him a toothy grin, "that bad things may happen to good people, and I'm sure neither of us would want that to happen."

"You think you can get to my family?" Lazar's eyes flashed red, he shook off the arm I had on his shoulder and glared at me viciously.

"I think the longest a satellite had been able to stay in Domino without getting caught is, oh three days?" I said flightily, "You can do a lot of things in three days, Vice Director."

"You won't even make it out of Satellite!" Lazar was obviously threatened by my previous comments.

"Sure, chances are we won't ever make it to the Satellite, but are you willing to risk their lives on those chances? Think hard, Vice Director, how long do you think you can keep us in here, or inside the Facilities for that matter?"

Lazar evaded my piercing gaze, now looking angry and fearful.

"I can be as good a friend as I am vengeful an enemy" I continued, "I'm sure that you'd find out friendship to be very, rewarding. Why not give it a try, we're not going anywhere."

I can almost feel the pressure of my gaze pushing his head down into a nod, Lazar turned towards the door and barked an order, the two guards who apprehended Vincent quickly released him.

...

Before Lazar made it to the front door, it was banged open again, startling us both.

"Vice Director Lazar, we found the culprit!" Said the security officer who just barged in, "We found the man in association with Kalin Kessler!"

He might have said more but I wasn't listening. I was staring at Chaos, dragged in stiffly by two officers on either side of him. The man who had carried Kalin like a twig last night could barely stand, his features were so badly disfigured that if it weren't for the short purple hair, I might not have recognized him. Blood trickled down his cheeks washing away the dirt and more dried blood. I could hear his weak gasps for breath, its cause was obvious when I looked at his chest, where the outlines of several ribs were either distorted or missing.

I swiped at my eyes, surprised to find them dry.

Lazar's eyes lit up. No doubt at the prospects of a promotion for a job well-done, I thought with disgust. He brightened even further when he turned around and saw the expression on my face, "you know him?" He asked victoriously, oil could have dripped out of his voice.

"He's a friend," I replied tensely, trying not to reveal too much emotion.

"Well, you really must be careful who you make friends with," Lazar said with a pointed look in Vincent's direction. "This is a very dangerous man. He was found with the escaped convict Kalin Kessler! He tried to deny it of course, but he had Kessler's DNA all over him."

"We caught him while he was disposing of dirt and a shovel contaminated with Kessler's DNA sir." The Sector Security guard supplemented.

I almost laughed at the irony. In the most literal sense, Chaos must have Kalin's blood on his hands, I saw Kalin bleeding on him when they left. Of course, I can understand how it might sound to Sector Security.

"Perhaps you could enlighten us as to what happened?" Lazar trained his eyes on me again.

"We don't know him very well either," Vincent explained for me. Was he voice always this grating? "Barely an acquaintance really."

"But this young man just called him a friend," Lazar pointed to me triumphantly, then cringed at the look on my face.

But I had no cards left to play. Threatening Lazar might get him to drop a personal vendetta, but Chaos' arrest was obviously official Domino business, and his capture was witnessed by a number of Sector agents. Rex Goodwin might be able to release him, but Lazar doesn't have that kind of power yet, and I don't have any hold over Goodwin.

"Out," I said simply, not trusting myself to say anything more. Lazar flinched but didn't move. "Out, before something happens that we both regret." I repeated through gritted teeth.

"Well, I guess there's nothing more to be done here," Lazar winced but still had the guts to look happy, "let's call it a day, shall we?" He led the way out of the house, Sector Security following closely behind into the sunlight.

'He's fine.' Chaos lifted his head up with some effort and mouthed just before he was dragged out. I knew he was talking about Kalin and felt my vision blur with tears.

,,,

"So…" Galen studied me carefully in a way that made me feel like he knew something, "do you think he actually did it? Killed Kessler I mean?"

"Would've done the world a favor," Vincent muttered, "they should be giving him a medal."

Cyril shifted uncomfortably, having been drawn by the commotion to the front of the house. He realized Kalin's absence this morning but didn't have time to discuss it yet.

"What do we do now?" The white-haired teen asked uncomfortably.

"We continue as planned," I breathed out heavily, feeling faint. Chaos got himself locked up for this little venture, it would make no sense to stop it on his account. "Get everybody back to work, I'll think of something."

Vincent nodded with understanding, obviously thinking I needed to cope with Chaos leaving, "we'll give you some space."

I didn't need space, I needed time. Time to think and time to act. I wasn't going to let that be the last time I see Chaos, and I certainly wasn't going to let him rot in the Facilities. Kalin died in there in less than two years, I didn't have the guts to wonder how long Chaos would last. With some help, willing or otherwise, I _will_ get him back.

Say, Yusei and Crow's duel runners should be ready by now.

* * *

"Director Goodwin, we've caught the source of the disturbance in the Satellite," Lazar stood proud; even for him, this was a big deal- the murderer of the convict Kalin Kessler.

"Oh?" Goodwin spared Lazar a glance, he certainly didn't expect results this quickly, especially not from his clown of an assistant.

"Our officers originally discovered somebody bearing a high resemblance to the fugitive Kalin Kessler, riding with somebody else on a duel runner. We lost track of the duo for a while. When we found them again, there was no trace of Kessler, so we immediately apprehended the other rider," Lazar had wanted to hide the loss of the fugitive Kalin Kessler, but given the number of operatives involved, it would be next to impossible. "We'll get the whole story out of him soon."

Rex Goodwin nodded thoughtfully, "and why do you believe him to be the cause of the problems in the Satellite?"

"But, but he was with Kessler, sir, he still has Kessler's DNA all over him," Lazar defended his decision. His employer had been purposely vague about his mission, citing a possible cause of disorder as the reason for this sudden search of Satellite. Truth be told, Lazar had no idea what he was looking for, but the murderer of the fugitive ex-leader of the Enforcers seems to fit the bill. "I assure you, everything else in the Satellite is running smoothly."

Lazar grimaced inwardly upon remembering the threat he received. He did briefly consider labeling Yuki Tono and Vincent a 'disturbance', even though they were clearly just another business struggling to survive in the Satellite. But Yuki's words haunted him. A satellite caught for no particular reason is kept for at most 3 months in the Facilities, and Lazar shudder to think what these satellites were capable of once they were released.

Rex turned away from Lazar, slowly pacing the room. Had Kalin been the source of the Netherworld King's strength, surely Roman would have known. He himself was aware of the teen's limited abilities, which did not include any magic other than what was granted him through his Dark Signer mark.

"How's our newest recruit?" He asked. "Has he settled in yet?"

"Yes sir," Lazar answered immediately, used to Goodwin's sudden changes in topic. "We have completed all background checks and psychological evaluations on Greiger, he's training for the Fortune Cup like the others."

"Good, send him in," Goodwin said, making up his mind, "I have a new assignment for him."

He wouldn't have any use for the man for another month at least, might as well send him on a mission in the meantime.

* * *

I shuffled my new Six-Samurai deck restlessly, trying to calm myself.

Lazar had hinted at what Chaos' crime was supposed to be- murder. With Kalin's blood on his hands (quite literally) and a shovel in his car (scooter), it's not a far-fetched inference. Not that Neo Domino would spend too much time trying to prove the innocence of a satellite. I wasn't certain what the punishment for murder was, but I wasn't going to let Chaos rot in jail until the Dark Signer arc ends and Kalin is proven alive. For one thing, I'm not sure if he'd survive that long in jail. For another, even in light of the new evidence and with a fair trial, he would still be charged with aiding and abiding a known fugitive, a crime that he did commit.

If I don't do anything more, I realized, today might be the last time Chaos ever saw actual sunlight.

Saving him would be risky, the odds are far against me than for, even if I managed to get the help I needed. But if I wanted to ever sleep at night again, I can't let a friend die in jail because of me.

Vincent had told me all he knew about the legal process in Domino City, in an attempt to dissuade me from getting Chaos out or at least not get myself captured in the process. It did give me pause.

The Facilities is located 140km north of Neo Domino City, there isn't another city or indeed any other structure within hundreds of kilometers. As such, Sector Security just assumes anybody within 50km of the Facilities is either trying to escape or trying to rescue someone; in all cases so far, they have been justified in this assumption. Under such regulations, nobody had heard of successful escapes from the Facilities, not until they saw the ex-leader of the Enforcers alive.

After all, evading the modern police force relies mostly on hiding rather than speed. Even in an anime, it's highly improbably to escape a high-speed police chase for hundreds of kilometers on flat, unobstructed terrain. If we somehow managed to get in without raising any alarm, the Facilities are still heavily guarded inside, and I have no idea where Chaos would be kept, whether it's one of the thousands of standard cells, in isolation or worse. We'd be caught before we ever reached him.

…

"Yuki-sama," a clear baritone rang out beside me, dragging me out of my deliberations.

I looked up, boobs.

From my position sitting on the ground, I saw a pair of legs that weren't much shorter than I was, a slim exposed mid-riff, long jet black hair, and the well-toned, well-tanned skin,

"Hello Greiger," I said flatly, "what do you want?"

"How do you know of me?" He was obviously taken aback.

'The bra gave you away' is what I would have said had I been in a more talkative mood. It's a well-known fact that your abdomen is at least as vulnerable as the chest area in any type of hostile situation, so if your armor only covers the chest, it's a friggin' bra. What happened? They couldn't get enough screen time for female characters so Konami (can't even blame 4Kids for this one) figured they'd just stuff a guy in a bra and see what happens?

"I know a lot of things," I said distractedly. My words had alarmed Greiger far more than I had expected, I was surprised to see his visibly tightened expression, and even a bit of sweat on his brow. That raised my suspicions, what _was_ Greiger doing here in the Satellite?

"Can I help you?" I asked when it didn't looked like future Goodwin(s) lackey was going to talk.

"I heard about the water generator you produced," Greiger began hesitantly.

I tried to recall the anime, right, his village was essentially a wasteland- there was literally no vegetation anywhere on flat ground, even though the surrounding mountains had plenty of plant life. I took a second to wonder how they survived. With the levels of pollution, fishing is out of the question, and it didn't look like they were close to a water source. Farming doesn't seem realistic when weed wouldn't even grow. So hunting maybe?

Being largely uninformed of the world outside the Satellite, I thought naively.

I was later to learn that removal of pollutants, even to the level barely capable of supporting plant life, were astronomical in energy costs. The Japanese government, indeed the global governments in general, had not invested in such costly, long-term projects, hence the ridiculous quality of food. The forests surrounding his village were actually Kaiba Corp property, pollutant removed locally to create a resort for the wealthy. Naturally, hunting in these areas were strictly forbidden. Working adults in these non-agricultural villages go find jobs in the city, while the old and the young stays behind and do whatever piece-work they can find. In a place where roads were poorly maintained and most food and water must be shipped in, well, you can imagine the rest. Hence Greiger's resolve in improving the livelihood of his village.

'Hmmph?" was all I said, despite all the thoughts racing through my mind.

"The generator!" he said earnestly, "I was hoping I would be permitted to purchase one."

"Right," I nodded, "find Vincent, he should be around somewhere, I don't have any left around here."

"And what can I offer in exchange?" He asked, still sounding sincere as my suspicions escalated. Where did he hear about our generator if he didn't also hear that we're handing them out for free.

"The blueprints are free of charge," I said with a smile, deciding to test my suspicions further, "but it would be great if you could stay and help out. I'm sure there're a lot more machines like that we could provide if you need them."

"I would be glad to offer any help I can," He replied in response. Unexpected from a man who's trying to make a living for his village, he has far better potential employers.

But as the saying goes, keep your friends close and your enemies closer. If he wasn't a spy, a premise which I'm becoming less and less optimistic about, we get extra muscle. If he _was_ a spy, he'd be the best way to allay any concerns Goodwin might have about our little establishment.

"Perfect," I said with an even larger smile, "I think Nervin has the designs for a solar-powered electric generator that would work wonderfully in under-developed areas."

I saw his eyes light up. Of course, the Momentum only covers a relatively small area around Domino City, so their village would need a separate source of energy. I think I remember them using fire, actual _fire_ in the anime, when Domino City is using a _wireless transmission_ of energy. The disparity is terrifying.

"But I need you do to something for me first, I need you to acquire a kid in the Satellite named Crow Hogan."

Greiger didn't even flinch at my kidnapping request, "is there anything I should beware of?" He asked.

"Yes, do not, under any circumstances, duel him," I cautioned, "don't ask why, just don't do it."

Greiger nodded, "I'll have him by sundown."

I smiled at his retreating form.

Having the advantage of knowing the anime, it's highly improbably for Greiger to agree to simply kidnapping somebody if he wasn't making a deliberate attempt to get close to me. All the better, since he's Rex Goodwin's lackey now, he's practically immune from the law. I can get him to do the dirty work so nobody else needs to be as involved. One person to rescue from the clutches of Domino's justice system is quite enough.

* * *

 **A/N:** Kalin was believed dead by the Satellite, but the Facilities would have to know that he escaped, so Lazar would know too.

 **A/N 2:** I like Greiger but his bra was odd.

Actually, the entire story was originally very similar in style to the bit with Greiger, then plot happened. :P


	12. Plans, okay, Schemes

**Disclaimer** : I do not own YGO 5ds.

* * *

"I'm going to rescue Chaos," I stated solemnly, looking at the three others I chose to include in this decision, "I can't tell you exactly what I'm going to do but I will tell you it's dangerous. So you have a chance to back out now if you want to, leave now and we'll pretend this conversation never happened."

"Give it up," Vincent said impatiently, pulling on his ponytail, "even if we don't care what kind of trouble this is getting us into, you can't possibly think you're actually going to rescue anybody from the Facilities."

"It's too dangerous, Yuki," Felice frowned, "we don't stand a chance.

"I can't tell you anything until you're in." I replied. Truth is, it's risky even afterwards, but I had little choice.

"Can I talk you out of it?" Galen asked skeptically.

I shook my head.

"Then count me in." The pink-haired teen relented, "if only to stop you from getting yourself locked up in the process. But as soon as you do something crazy, we stop everything."

Oh I'm so far past crazy I can't even see crazy from where I stand.

Felice sighed and nodded too. Vincent gave her an annoyed look.

"What's your plan? I'd love to hear how to get somebody out of the Facilities." He asked.

"We're not going after the Facilities," I smirked, "The only chance we have is the 3-day window when Chaos is within Domino City, on trial and waiting for the transfer."

"You can get to Domino City in three days?" Vincent's eyes narrowed, focusing immediately on the crux of my plan.

"I can't," I replied, "But I'm pretty sure Yusei and Crow can."

"Then what?" Vincent pressed, taking for granted the ex-Enforcers can probably do a lot of things the 'regular folks' can't.

"Yusei has a grudge with the so-called King at Domino City," I replied, "You might remember him, Jack Atlas?"

"Atlas?" Galen chortled, "You're kidding."

"Anyways, Jack's apparently a bigshot now, so Yusei would go and challenge him, attracting all the attention from Sector Security, while Crow and I go rescue Chaos."

"That'll work?" Galen asked skeptically.

"It's the best I've got," I admitted. "Leavings should be fine, and getting back shouldn't be too difficult if we take the river." I'm not as hopeful about the actual rescue attempt.

"It's possible," Felice admitted, "If you can actually leave the Satellite. I don't like your odds, but you have a chance."

Not a good chance.

Not a good enough chance that I would want to send anybody else from my crew into Domino City. But it's good enough to warrant the attempt.

I got Chaos into this mess, so if I can't get him out, the least I can do is join him.

"And how are you going to get the Enforcers to cooperate?" Vincent asked, "Pretty big favor you're asking, Fudo's pretty much doomed."

"I'm sure they can be properly motivated," I replied sheepishly. "Greiger left to pick up Crow," Literally. "And um..."

"Felice, I need you..." Okay, here comes the part of the plan I wasn't as proud of. I paused, looked around and scratched my head. I really didn't see another way around it. Crow was smart, resourceful, an excellent duelist and quite often very lucky, he'd escape our little imprisonment with little difficulty. Unless there's something holding him back, "I need you to bring the kids he takes care of here too, not yet, I'll let you know when it's time."

"Bring.-"Galen tilted his head, not quite understanding.

"Kidnap," Felice blanched, "you're going to kidnap the kids Hogan cares for!"

"We're not gonna hurt them," I assured Felice hurriedly, "…We just have to convince Crow that we would."

Vincent shook his head, not saying a word. His expression were a little similar to mine after I first bit into Satellite rations.

"These kids'll be fine," I repeated emphatically, "we'll take better care of them than Crow ever could. We'll tell them it's an expansion of our educations system, nobody would lay a finger on them no matter what happens."

"And if you can Convince Hogan, Fudo would be putty," Vincent nodded.

In my defense, I thought as I felt my moral compass spinning out of control, Yusei is practically untouchable, Rex Goodwin would make sure of that. And Crow does have the protection of his dragon, and by extension, the Crimson Dragon. These two are any far less risk than anybody else I know. I'm not putting Yusei in any more risk than he would've otherwise gotten himself into, and Crow doesn't seem to mind running from Sector Security on a regular basis.

Okay, that's weak, even for an argument with yourself, but I don't have time to befriend the protagonists to the point where they would risk their life to save a friend of mine- I only have three days. And if I were to succeed in the plan, Yusei and Crow really were the best accomplices I can get.

One by one, Felice, Galen and Vincent nodded their unenthusiastic agreement. I smiled gratefully, "that'll be all. If all goes according to plan, Chaos should be with us again soon."

* * *

Roman Goodwin is not easily amused, but even he cracked a smile when he read Rex's coded message to his burner email, a type of communication the brothers reserved for urgent but non-critical information. The idea that a Dark Signer, _his_ Dark Signer, being murdered by the mere mortal man is so ridiculous that it was entertaining. What was Rex thinking? Has he not yet comprehended the powers of these monstrous beasts? Their powers to shape the universe went far beyond even the wildest imaginations of any measly mortal, rendering them infallible in Roman's eyes.

Just in case, he glanced at Kalin's candle, which was still burning strong at his normal seat, a representation of the energies within his soul. It did flicker for a while last night, but Roman dismissed that as another crisis of the mind, to which Kalin was prone ever since he had been converted.

Kalin had left yesterday morning and had not reported back since. While Roman was not concerned for the safety of his Dark Signers, he did wonder if Kalin had decided to take the chance and defeat Yusei Fudo once and for all.

He hoped not.

Speaking as the representative of an evil from another dimension, the loss of one Signer might be replaced if the Crimson Dragon was given enough time, so it's imperative that all Signers be defeated as close together temporally as possible.

Speaking as a mortal not wanting to see the destruction of everything he had known, the son of Professor Fudo is one of the strongest warrior of Light in this world, perhaps second only to Rex. His defeat would weaken the Crimson Dragon even further, leading to unforeseen consequences.

For once, the light and darkness within his soul agreed, Yusei Fudo was not to be defeated yet. Not until he had recruited all warriors of darkness, and Rex had recruited all warriors of light. The Crimson Dragon wouldn't stand a chance if all five Signers were not gathered to fight for its cause. At this rate, even that might not be enough to save the future of this dimension.

* * *

Greiger stepped inside the house just as the last trace of sunlight left the Satellite, he looked around searchingly, then focused on the teen coming forward to greet him.

"You must be Greiger, come inside, Yuki's upstairs, she's been waiting for you. Say, what did she get you to do anyways?" Teddy looked curiously at the visitor and the large sac on his shoulder.

It's been pretty obvious that Yuki had made a plan of some sort, and it involved this stranger, but nobody has told him what it was. Sometimes, it sucks to be the youngest.

Greiger didn't respond, only motioned with his hand for Teddy to lead the way, and followed when the brown-haired teen reluctantly complied.

"You know, you talk less than Felice did when she had that toothache," Teddy grumbled, "and talking literally hurt her like pulling teeth."

Greiger didn't react to that comment either, although if Teddy had been looking, he would've see the tall brunet's lips curl up by the fraction of a degree.

"How come you're working for Yuki?" Teddy was not to be deterred by his companion's silence. "I'm Teddy by the way, if you need anything, just look for me. Us brunets have to stick together. You'd think there'd be more of us, this being Japan and all. Are you gonna be here long?"

"No," Greiger finally gave a single word of reply as he followed his young host.

"Why not? You don't like Yuki?" Teddy continued pattering on, "She's not all that bad. I mean she can be a little cuckoo, okay, a lot cuckoo. You know she's forcing Felice to force all the kids to learn how to read and do maths? Felice is the whitehaired girl by the way, you can't miss her. She's the only girl here. I mean except for Yuki of course, but you can barely tell with Yuki."

Greiger nodded silently behind him, at least he couldn't tell.

"Teddy!" Vincent stopped the youngest member of the Magicians at the bottom of the stairs, blabbering about everything and anything that came to his mind to Greiger. They really need to stop letting Teddy interact with suspicious strangers, or at least teach him the importance of keeping secrets from people you barely knew. "Thanks, I'll show him up."

Teddy stuck out his tongue, knowing Vincent doesn't want him to learn this secret Yuki was keeping. "Bye Greiger," he waved and went back to the kitchen. Felice had deemed him the substitute teacher, so he has to learn tomorrow's lessons, in case he has to teach it.

…

"Yuki-sama," Greiger nodded curtly in my direction after Vincent showed him into the large study on the second floor. Vincent followed him inside and closed the door.

"Have a seat," I gestured to the wooden chairs Cyril built, "how did everything go?"

Greiger made no reply, instead he dropped the sac on his shoulder onto the floor, revealing an unconscious teenager with large orange hair and more piercings than was healthy in the Satellite, given the sanitation conditions. Both Vincent and Felice winced.

I turned my eyes to Felice sprawled out on the sofa, she gave me a dirty look and meandered towards the door. That was the signal, when Crows gets here, she was going to convince (trick? Coerce?) the kids he lived with to come here.

"You can't let those kids spend the night by themselves," Vincent sighed, pushing Felice gently towards the door. None of the kids Crow cared for was older than 10 and it's too dangerous for them to spend the night alone in the Satellite.

When Felice eventually made her way out the door, I smiled at Greiger. "I believe this is yours," I pushed the designs Nervin made of a solar power generator towards him. I was going to tell Greiger the design would take a couple of days, but Nervin literally free-handed the thing- my spider-haired engineer obviously had no idea how badass the things he does really are- so I need something else to keep Greiger here. It's actually a little challenging, his village had next to nothing, so I don't know what he needs.

Greiger pocketed the designs without a word but didn't rise to leave.

"If you wait a couple of days," I took the chance to say, "We can probably make you a model or even a prototype, I'm sure that would come in handy when you guys are building your own machines."

Greiger nodded almost imperceptibly, his expression unreadable as always.

"We're still hiring of course, and we're still training new recruits, so if you can help out, that'd be great too." I added. I'm still not entirely certain if he's friend or foe, but I do know that we're desperately short-handed.

"I can stay for a while," Greiger said, sounding candid and reliable in that deep baritone.

"That would be awesome," I think I overdid that line, "Have you met Teddy? He can show you to your room, just let him know that you're taking over for Felice and him."

"I can find him," Greiger rose. Seeing that I have nothing else to add, he nodded to Vincent and I before leaving.

…

"Who's Mr. Tall, Dark, and Handsome-if-you-have-low-standards?" Vincent asked skeptically.

"Greiger," I replied in surprise, "I thought you knew."

"I know his name," Vincent replied, "but who is he really, what do you know about him? You realize he's lying through his teeth. I mean the guy has a duel runner, what's he doing _here_?"

"Yeah," I made a face, "his story's got more holes in it than Swiss cheese, but, um, he's a good guy."

Vincent pointed mutely at the still unconscious, gagged and bound Crow on the floor.

"He's an _okay_ guy," I amended, "He's reliable, but I wouldn't trust him, he'd easily stab us in the back given the right incentives. I mean, I don't blame him for it, we all value things a little differently."

"So we're keeping this guy around that we know nothing about? And trusting him with the kids? Why?" Vincent's voice reeked with disapproval.

"Both Felice and Teddy suck at dealing with the kids and they hate it. I'm pretty sure Greiger's literate, and half decent at teaching small children." I explained. Seeing the annoyance on Vincent's face, I got a little more serious, "I think he's a spy for Domino," I answered honestly, "so he can come in handy. If not, he'll be pretty useful here too. Though we should still be careful, it's not going to be hard for Goodwin to turn him against us."

Vincent didn't seem surprised at the knowledge of Greiger's likely secret identity, he chose to focus on something else.

"It's pretty easy for Goodwin to turn _anybody_ against us, it is _Rex Goodwin,_ the Director of Domino City you're talking about, right?" Vincent, like most people in the Satellite, had long accepted Goodwin's almost absolute control over both parts of Domino. "That can't be the case though. What would Rex Goodwin want from us that he needs to send a _spy_ to get?"

"I'm not sure," because there're too many possibilities, "but let's be careful. As far as Greiger's concerned, we got Crow here because we don't trust him with the kids he's supposedly taking care of. And Greiger is to know nothing about our plan to rescue Chaos."

"That won't be too difficult," Vincent complained, "I don't even know anything about the plan."

"There's no point getting you involved too," I assured him, "now go. I'll wake Crow up, I think I'll have a little chat with him first."

"Whatever he says, don't untie him," Vincent gave me a worried look and left with the door ajar, presumably so he could better hear my tortured screams of pain and fear from dealing with an ex-Enforcer.

I snickered, gently patting the orange furball Crow calls hair. Vincent's acting like Crow was the villain here.

I felt guilty about this, I really did, just not guilty enough to stop. I needed to put a useful team together and quickly, I can't risk Chaos being locked up, then just 'forgotten about' for the rest of his life. With the Facilities being practically impenetrable, I had a 3-day window while he was in Domino City to get enough people together and rescue him, without getting anybody else locked up. So I needed to ensure Crow and Yusei's cooperation immediately, there wouldn't be many other opportunities.

After the Dark Signer arc, Lazar takes temporary control over Domino City, then it's the Z-One guys, then Lazar again. Lazar doesn't seem he'd be particularly inclined to grant a pardon to a friend of mine, and the Z-One people creep even me out. Without this 'prison' break, the best case scenario is for Chaos' crime to be corrected to aiding a fugitive after Kalin is seen alive, which would still keep him in jail for a very long time.

As for the consequences of messing with the protagonists? I'll deal with those when they come. Some things take precedence.

* * *

 **A/N:** This chapter was supposed to include a lot more plot, but that made it ridiculously long. More importantly, I haven't written the rest yet, so I thought this would be a good place to cut it off.

 **A/N 2:** You can see Roman conflicted until his last duel with Rex Goodwin. When he dueled Yusei, he went full Dark Signer. So he's portrayed here as schizophrenic rather than full-on homicidal.

 **A/N 3:** I could have had Yuki convince the protagonists of course, but 1. Yusei really isn't the type to sacrifice himself for complete strangers, and 2. What would be the fun in that?

 **A/N 4:** Honestly, nobody else from Satellite recognized Jack as the 'King' in Domino City even though the Enforcers took over the city and disbanded all duel gangs? Really? So lack of technology it is.

Also, I should probably mention, Yuki isn't the 'paragon of good' type of main character, she isn't even the 'hesitates but always has and selects the morally infallible option in the end' type of main character. Because she's a human who originated from reality, so she'll have a significant number of flaws which may or may not become obvious as the story progresses.


	13. Luck Has Nothing to Do With It

**Disclaimer** : I do not own YGO 5ds.

 **A/N:** I need a unified theme for each chapter, rather than just cutting them off when I feel like it. It's getting really hard thinking of good chapter names.

* * *

"Hey," I gently shook Crow by the shoulder. "You okay?"

"Hmm!" Large blue eyes snapped opened in terror and alarm, Crow struggled in vain against his bonds, hard enough to rattle the wooden floorboards on the second floor.

"I'm going to take off the gag, can you promise me not to scream?" I asked gently. Crow looked a lot younger than the other three Enforcers, realizing that I had put him through this made me feel more than a little guilty.

Crow nodded, "what happened? Who are you?" he asked urgently as soon as he was able.

"My name is Yuki Tono," I replied with as friendly a smile as I could manage.

"Yuki?" Crow grinned, flashing pearly white teeth that suggest a lack of candy consumption, "I know you, you're the new girl who's trying to fix the Satellite."

Well, he's not making this any easier. I rubbed my neck uncomfortably. The only alternative I had, other than kidnapping Crow, is blackmailing Rex Goodwin, and that just seemed like an even worse idea.

"Wait," Crow looked like he was finally coming to his sense, his face crunched up in concentration, "I remember a really big guy coming towards me on a duel runner. I thought he was going to challenge me to a duel, but then he just knocked me out!"

Yeah, that sounds like Greiger, I scratched my head sheepishly.

"So you had him bring me here!" Crow finally realized, seeing that I made no move to untie him.

"Um... Right," I breathed out heavily, deciding to cut to the case, "I'm the one who got you here. I need you to help me rescue a friend from Sector Security."

"And you kidnapped me!" Crow replied accusingly, "what makes you think I'll have anything to do with you?"

"Well, I _am_ robbing the Sector, and trying to rescue an innocent man, it's not like I'm doing something _bad_." I defended my position, making a futile attempt at convincing him before this turns ugly, "and we can discuss the details of payments if you're interested."

Crow's eyes flickered a little as he considered my proposal. Raising kids in the Satellite, while you're still a kid yourself, was bound to have its challenges, so any sort of income was not to be turned down lightly.

"No," He turned down the offer finally, "I don't trust you. When the time comes, I think you'll squawk to Domino, or leave me hanging in the branches."

"I can pay you up front," I tried again, secretly surprised that he even considered my suggestion, "or we can involve third party that you trust." Preferably not Yusei since he'd be kidnapped next.

"I said no." Crow remained adamant despite his position of being tied up on the floor, "I stick to my own course, and I don't fly with the likes of you."

Maybe I should've asked him nicely first, I realized in hindsight. I never considered that he would agree to risking his life to save a stranger, so 'asking' didn't occur to me until a little too late. If I had a little bit more time, if I had been a little calmer and actually discussed the idea with those around me... Then again, even if Crow conceded, I don't think Yusei would, so I'd have to end up kidnapping him, which means in the end, I'd still lose Crow's willing assistance.

"Well," I said instead, "I'm afraid that may not be entirely up to you."

"What do you mean?" Crow asked in alarm, lifting his upper body off the floor.

"Umm…" I paused uncomfortably, still not great at whole being-villainous business.

"The kids who live with you are with us now," Vincent walked in confidently, not at all disguising the fact that he had been eavesdropping on this entire conversation, "They're receiving the best education, regular exercise and three meals a day. How long that lasts, is entirely up to you."

Crow cringed backwards as though hit, his large blue eyes trained on me, brimming with anger and betrayal.

I looked away.

"How could you?" He lashed out angrily at Vincent, "What did those kids ever do to you?"

"I really am sorry," I apologized and meant it. I knew Vincent was trying to draw the fire away but I can't exactly let him take the heat for my decision, "but I need your help in this Crow, and I'll do anything to secure it."

"Fine then!" Crow replied, fury burning in his eyes, "I'll help you, but let those kids go."

"You know it doesn't work like that," I answered patiently, "You must complete the mission first."

"And what if you don't follow up on your promise?" Crow demanded.

"You have my word," I offered what little assurances I could, "or if you'd prefer some sort of collateral…"

"How dare you compare those kids to collateral?" Crow raged, "Your 'word' doesn't mean a thing to me! Tell you what, I'll duel you," Crow said resolutely. "You always duel for the other person's most valuable card, right?" That's not exactly true or a reputation I wanted, but Crow continued without giving me a chance to correct him.

"I'll duel you for the kids you kidnapped." 'Invited', I thought weakly in my head.

"If I win, you let those kids go, if you win, I'll give you my rarest card, the Black-winged Dragon – Black Feather (lv8, lv8, 2800/1600)."

I didn't need the card, or want the card that was the symbol of his Signer status, but it would be excellent payment for his assistance during the raid, so I consented with some confidence. Surely, if I can beat Kalin using only a Chaos deck, I could beat Crow with a Six-Samurai deck. I thought naively, utterly oblivious to the magical forces at work.

* * *

"Let's duel," We both said together.

 **Turn 1, Crow's Turn, Crow 4000 LP, Yuki 4000 LP**

Crow drew his first card, "I summon Blackwing- Zephros the Elite (lv4, 1600/1000) to the field in attack mode. Next, when I have a Blackwing monster on the field, I can special summon Blackwing- Bora the Spear (lv4, 1700/800) onto the field in attack mode. I'll place one card facedown and end my turn."

 **Turn 2, Yuki's Turn, Crow 4000 LP, Yuki 4000 LP**

I drew next and stared at my hand unbelievingly. The six cards in my hand ran as follows: Mystical Space Typhoon, Heavy Storm, United We Stand, Cunning of the Six Samurai, Gateway of the Six, and Grandmaster of the Six Samurai (lv5, 2100/800).

If you're not familiar with these cards, that's five spell cards and one level 5 monster. Not a single monster I could summon to the field, and not a single card that can destroy monsters or stall/negate an attack. Crow already had two monsters with a total of 3300 attack on his field.

"I set two cards facedown," I announced, looked at his facedown card hopefully, "Then I play, Mystic Space Typhoon to destroy your facedown card."

"I activate my trap," Crow smirked, "Icarus Attack, by tributing one Blackwing monster on my field, I can destroy two cards on your side of the field, and I'll tribute Blackwing- Zephros the Elite, to destroy both of your facedown cards.

That's exactly what I hoped he'd do, by sacrificing the spells Heavy Storm and Cunning of the Six Samurai, he was one monster down, and thus hopefully, wouldn't have enough attack to wipe me out next turn.

"I place one more card face-down and end my turn." I announced, more than a little annoyed at my hand.

 **Turn 3, Crow's Turn, Crow 4000 LP, Yuki 4000 LP**

"Is that all you got?" Crow taunted, "I told you my birds would fly circles around you. I summon, Blackwing- Blizzard the Far (lv2, tuner) from my hand, when this monster is normal summoned, I can bring one lv 4 or below Blackwing monster back from the grave in defense mode, and I choose my Blackwing- Zephros the Elite. I tune my Blizzard the Far with my Bora the Spear to special summon, Blackwing Armed Wing (lv6, 2300/1000)."

He was playing very cautiously, leaving a monster in defense mode just in case, no doubt suspecting Mirror Force as my trap. I groaned silently. If only he knew.

"Blackwing Armed Wing, attack!" Crow commanded, and my life points dropped to 1700. "That's really all you got?" He asked in sincere surprise.

 **Turn 4, Yuki's Turn, Crow 4000 LP, Yuki 1700 LP**

I made no audible response as he ended his turn, closing my eyes and hoping for the best- aka any monster I could summon. The card I received was Six Samurai United, a spell card that allows the user to place one counter on it for every Six Samurai monster summoned, up to 2, and draw one card for each counter. An excellent card of course, except my problem was that I had no monsters to summon to begin with!

* * *

"I forfeit the duel!" I grumbled, utterly pissed off.

"Really? I barely took off," Crow asked, temporarily forgetting our animosity, "They said you were pretty good."

I showed him my hand and even he couldn't help sniggering. Seven cards and not a single monster I could summon.

"Rematch," I demanded angrily.

"Hey! A deal' a deal!" Crow protested with equal anger.

"The deal's off. We duel again, that's my offer, take it or leave it." I had other ways of making Crow do what I wanted, but I felt a vague disquietude about my last duel. I can't quite place it, but something felt off. It's one thing to lose, but quite another to lose like this, it's like something out there had it out for me.

I went first in our second duel, and again, for the first two draws, I had no monsters nor a single card that would bring a monster into my hand. I forfeited the game on the 3 turn this time. What are the freaking odds?

Actually, I paused as the thought occurred to me, what _are_ the odds?

Calculus had killed me, but before being forced to calculate things that didn't exist, I understood most of the math I came into contact with.

So I had a 40 card deck. I flipped through it, 14 of those 40 cards were cards that were not a lv4 or below monster, could not bring such a monster into my hand and didn't negate any attacks. So the odds of drawing 7 of these cards in a row… I really needed a calculator for this, but I was too embarrassed to go borrow Nervin's computer to calculate what the exact chances were of me losing this badly.

Crow looked at me curiously as I crouched in a corner after forfeiting the duel, drawing on dirt with a stick (paper was expensive, remember?). "What are you doing?" He asked cautiously. Not having any education beyond grade school, he didn't understand even the simpler math. (It truly is a miracle that Yusei Fudo is more capable than any scientist in Domino City even though he never received any education.)

"I'm trying to figure out how I could've lost that badly." I muttered darkly in response.

"You can't win a duel with numbers, you have to trust in your deck and trust in yourself." Crow laughed, eyes still bright from his victories.

Since he hadn't been a sore winner, I didn't remind him that it wasn't smart to mock your captors.

Instead, I ignored him. My chances of drawing 7 cards in a row without being able to summon a single monster was, roughly, 1/5500. Sure that happens, but let's just say the odds are against it. To have that happen twice in a row though, brings us to less than 1 in 25 million. Now those are lottery-winning odds.

Crow couldn't have cheated, he's not the type, nor did he ever get the chance. But… That's not to say somebody, or rather some _thing_ could not cheat on his behalf.

"Well?" Crow asked, "Are you going to claim bad luck again?" I ignored him. If my suspicions were true, I had much, _much_ bigger problems.

"Wait here," I said as I rushed out the door to find Nervin, I needed an accurate statistical model on the 'luck' involved in each card Crow and I drew, to see if and how either the Crimson Dragon, the Blackwing Dragon or just Fate is affecting our duels.

It was an ultimate nightmare of many mortals, myself included, to have your fate dictated before you even made a move. I feared it may have just came true for me.

…

"Hi Crow," Nervin greeted my orange-haired opponent awkwardly, "What brings you here?" I forgot, of course they would know each other. In my frenzy, I had also forgotten that Nervin doesn't know about Crow's acquisition (ie. our acquisition of Crow), or how he got here.

"Nervin! So that's where you are!" Crow hugged Nervin close, "Did she kidnap you too?" He asked before I could stop him.

"Okay, okay, that's enough chitchat," I had to interrupt, braving Nervin's suspicious glances.

It was a simple model I had Nervin construct, so he tells me. Each given card was allotted a value of 1-3, 1 being a bad draw and 3 being a good draw. The duel disk would record each card drawn, Nervin would allot each card with a number as they're drawn, then calculate the cumulative odds of us each drawing the cards we did. He's not a great duelist, but he knew enough about the game to score the cards appropriately.

"What are we dueling for?" Crow asked suspiciously. "Are-"

"Yes, yes," I said quickly before he could say any more, "I'll hold up my end of the bargain from our last duel. Tell you what, defeat me enough times, and I'll let you go."

"That shouldn't be too hard," Crow smirked, sounding relieved at my response (and for some reason choosing to trust it), "How many times do you want to lose?"

"Let him go?" Nervin asked surprised, "Yuki, what are you talking about?"

"Nervin," I looked at him pleadingly, "just trust me this once. I'm trying to figure something out."

Like exactly how much magical assistance the supernatural allies of a future Signer were willing and able to provide him.

Nervin nodded with visible reservations, he must think I was trying to choose between the path of light and darkness or some crazy philosophical stuff like that.

"Lose once," I warned Crow, "and you're here for a very long time." Just to make sure that whatever magic that may be helping Crow knew that there was a lot riding on each duel.

Crow gritted his teeth and agreed.

Even with the help of the Crimson Dragon, he can't possibly win all his duels, right?

* * *

Elsewhere in the Satellite, non-villainous plans were progressing much more smoothly.

"Done!" Yusei stood up triumphantly, even his naturally stoic expression dissolved into a smile as the teen examined the results of his handiwork. Even though it was night, and the sunlight never reaches these tunnels even during the day, he could almost feel its rays shining light on his and his friends' future.

"Woah!" Tank ogled the ride, reaching his hand out and withdrawing just before he touched it.

"Nice work Yusei," Blitz tried to hide the elation behind a worldly demeanor, he was betrayed by his hands shaking in excitement and his eyes glued to the red runner.

"This is so cool!" Rally said in awe, "It looks amazing Yusei!"

"It was good that you saw the spare parts when you did," Yusei praised the small redhead, "otherwise it would've taken at least another three months."

"Let's take it for a test run!" Rally suggested hopefully. Being the youngest in the group, he was still small enough to fit comfortably on the backseat, maybe he could go for a ride when Yusei came back from his duel with Jack.

Tank quickly give Blitz a look.

"Yusei," Blitz said, "Why don't you take Rally for a ride to celebrate? We have more than enough time tonight. When you come back, we would have designed the optimum route in the tunnels to fully simulate the conditions of riding to Domino City."

Rally looked at Yusei hopefully, then looked away with some difficulty, "no, I can't do that Yusei. This runner is all of our hope to get to Domino City, I can just ride it for fun."

"Riding is supposed to be fun," Yusei smiled one of his rare smiles, holding Rally up under his arms and placing him on the backseat, then getting on himself "we'll go around the Satellite, I know a couple of roads above ground that the Sector never checks."

Rally could barely contain his excitement as he grabbed onto the back of Yusei's jacket. Laughter, a sound so rare in these tunnels, rang out dangerously until Tank warned him to stop, so they didn't attract any unwanted attention.

With his feet on the accelerator, Yusei quickly raced out of sight, a happy Rally sitting behind him and smiling ear-to-ear.

Tank looked visibly relaxed as they faded out of sight.

"So?" Tank looked at Blitz, "what are we going to do about Nervin?"

Yusei was still oblivious to Nervin's location, the two men had purposely omitted that fact so the leader of their gang would not go out recklessly and put himself into even more danger. They had thought the runner would take months, by which time Nervin would have hopefully gotten back to his senses and came back from whatever group he had joined. Unfortunately for Nervin, the runner has been completed months before schedule, thus both of them were at a loss.

"We have to tell him!" Blitz said, "We can't just leave him behind."

"And what? Have him expose us?" Tank retorted, pulling on his own short brown hair in frustration, "I don't want to leave him behind, Blitz, but I don't know if we can trust him right now."

"He has a right to know, as much as any of us," Blitz argued half-heartedly. Tank had a point, and all of them were on red alert after what happened with Jack.

"Even if it means he'd screw it up for the rest of us?" Tank demanded.

"Tell you what," Blitz rubbed his thin stubble, "let's test him. We'll make up something, drag him from the Magicians, see if he'll come back and help us."

They would call Nervin back at dawn, and see if he was still the friend they remembered. Thus decided, the two men opened a map of Domino City and began planning Yusei's simulation route so he could test them when he got back.

* * *

Even with the help of the Crimson Dragon, he can't possibly win all his duels, I had thought.

And that's how, by the next morning, I had lost 21 duels in a row to Crow Hogan.

The likelihood of him drawing the exact cards he needed at the exact time for each of these duels, according to the ridiculously complicated formula Nervin worked up, was less than 0.1%.

Not wanting to show weakness in front of my opponent, I had managed to struggle onto the hallway before my emotions finally got the better of me. Leaning against the wall just outside the door, I let myself slide down until I was sitting on the ground, hiding my face and my tears between my knees.

I never thought I'd be this broken up over a card game.

In my defense, there's a reason for the anger/fear-fueled breakdown. In one of my luckier duels against Crow, I had seen a flash of a dragon behind him as he drew Monster Reborn, the one card that could have saved him in that game. That's when I recognized the cause of Crow's lucky draws, the Crimson Dragon offering assistance to its protege.

I can never beat Crow with that Lizard in the way. I was defeated, once and for all. I haven't been this dejected since I realized which world I was in. It's the powerlessness of having done all that you can, and realizing it was not enough, and would never be enough. The dread of having a truly insurmountable obstacle in your path, one whose powers you cannot even begin to comprehend. The unavoidable fate of failure through no fault of your own.

It's reasonably safe to assume the same 'stroke of luck' would befall all the other protagonists and many of the magically-assisted villains, leaving me in the backdrop as the helpless damsel in distress praying for a victory I cannot influence. I thought I could control destiny, turns out it just didn't bother with peons until we upset its plans. For the first time in this world, I felt true despair.

"Yuki, it's okay," Galen knelt down beside me, "so you lost a couple of duels, you're still a good duelist. He just got lucky, you can see it in those numbers Nervin came up with." Nervin had left early this morning citing something personal. Distress was written all over his face but he was resolute in refusing our involvement (that was his word choice, I said 'help'). Galen replaced him as our 'score keeper'.

Yeah, lucky. Lucky that he was the mortal chosen by a giant supernatural lizard to turn the fate of humanity to a direction it desired, lucky that lizard happened to win, lucky Destiny itself was in his corner.

"Crow won't affect operations much," even Vincent admitted reluctantly. The leader of the Magicians had watched my duels with Crow with some concern, "just give him what he wants and stay out of his way. The Enforcers are like a hurricane, it's much easier just to wait and let it die out."

Part of me agreed, it wanted to relax, to let things be, to follow the flows of fate where it may. The other part wanted chocolate and steak, especially steak.

Had Japan, and the rest of the world, been living a fully modernized lifestyle, or at least guaranteed a living standard I could tolerate, I might have taken the easier way out, wait for the plot to finish, and just enjoyed the higher standard of living that would magically appear. As it stands, even after the bridge was constructed, even if Domino City suddenly had lost all qualms about it new Satellite citizens (many with a criminal past), I can't imagine our lives miraculously improve. I cannot realistically expect Neo Domino, with its population of two hundred thousand people, to provide opportunities for the half a million people in the Satellite. That kind of migration would only move the slums to a different part of the city rather than dissolve them.

I wanted chocolate, meat, clean water, fresh fruits and vegetables, and the other 'luxuries' of life the previous world had granted liberally- that required living better than 90% of the population in this idealized anime world. So I had the options of fighting magically enhanced dragons now, or fighting bureaucrats and politicians after the plot concludes. I'll take the dragons any day.

"I need help," I muttered darkly. If the main characters can't be defeated, I just have to get them on my side. Not Yusei yet, that would attract too much attention from Rex Goodwin, but some of the others were not under such careful scrutiny. I'll shift the emphasis to non-duel based actions of course, I'll lose a shortcut, but that's still an acceptable level of loss. The Crimson Dragon controlling our fates though, remains a concern.

"Yuki?" Galen asked carefully, "what happened? You sounded really scary for a second. Oomph, why did you elbow me Vincent? Stop doing it, I'll fight you!"

"I just had to figure something out," I smiled at the ground, remembering the man who had shown me the same mirthless grin, "like how to fight when Destiny is not on your side."

"Yu-,Yu-,Yuki," Cyril ran into the hallway breathlessly, almost barged into the room Crow was locked in before he saw me sitting on the floor. "Yuki! Come, quick! He's looking for you! He's at the front door already."

"Hmm!" I mumbled a protest and wiped the tears off my face before I lifted my head up. Still busy sulking, I didn't appreciate having to deal with any more problems today. A hush fell throughout the hallway, I looked up in surprise to see shock and horror on Cyril's face. "Who are we talking about?" I asked suspiciously.

"Kessler's back," Cyril whispered.

* * *

 **A/N:** I debated between a 'why did you kidnap me when you could've just asked for help?' Crow, and a 'how could you do something this evil' Crow. I finally decided on the second one, the first one was frankly more entertaining for me, but it made Crow either too naïve or too good an actor.

 **A/N 2:** Since the dragons chose their owners already, we can assume that the Signers have been chosen, with or without having been marked, i.e. Crow was destined to be a Signer from the beginning. Which is why this yet undisclosed 'magic' went to drastic measures to prevent Yuki from getting her hand on this card.

...

And this _will_ be a happy story... somehow...


	14. How to Free the Satellite

**Disclaimer** : I do not own YGO 5ds.

* * *

"Kalin," I was genuinely happy to see the blue-haired duelist this time. If some magical forces had prevented me from winning my duels, Kalin's magical powers could come in handy. I'll just brainwash, I mean convince, him. How hard can it be? This kid had never had a formal education beyond grade school, never seen the world beyond his hometown, never accessed books or even the internet beyond how to fix his duel disk. This is the kid who thought he could overthrow an autocratic government with 4 people (or 1 depending on how you look at it).

The Dark Signer was standing in the shadows, with one shoulder hunched over and his head tilted to the side, as though under some type of strain. Aside for myself, nobody seemed to see him as they walked right by, not sparing him a single look.

"It's a power of mine," Kalin said dismissively in response to my confused look, looking and sounding completely sane.

"What brings you here?" I asked will all the nicety I could muster, remembering that I wanted recruit him for his magical powers, "are you feeling better?"

Kalin's lips twisted into a crooked smile. "Much better," As soon as he spoke these words, I noticed a mostly healed scar on his forehead. Instinctively, I comprehended the use of his powers- he didn't exactly change his appearance, rather his powers ensured that I ignored the scar until he wanted me to see it. Much like how people around us ignored him when they passed by.

"Let's talk somewhere a little more private," Kalin suggested. Still maintaining that awkward stance, he followed me upstairs to my room. It's where 'Kalin Kessler' is least likely to be discovered.

"What do you want to talk about?" I acted as friendly as I could.

"This," Kalin released his magic and revealed Chaos whom he had carried on his shoulders. The purple-haired man looked worn out, but much better than when I saw him last.

I could have glomped Kalin if I wasn't worried about him magically cursing me or something. Kalin is a little like a stray cat right now, weary of strangers, very defensive, and capable of dealing a lot of damage if he wanted to. He's clearly beginning to trust me, and I don't want to ruin that.

On the other hand, he couldn't have given me a heads up? I kidnapped children and antagonized a main character for this!

"This doesn't mean we're not enemies," Kalin declared aloofly as he gently laid Chaos down onto my bed, "He did get me to a doctor, so this evens the score."

"Uh-huh," I nodded, obviously not convinced.

"I have no difficulty walking into holding cells and bringing somebody out," Kalin explained even though I didn't ask a question, "It was very simple with my powers of illusion."

"Uh-huh," I agreed again.

"So now that we're even," Kalin looked mildly annoyed at my insincere concessions. "I have more Dark Signer business. Roman would not learn of your location, as was our agreement." It was a second gesture of goodwill, which gave me hope. I didn't know what exactly his powers were as pertained to dueling or anything else, but it might come in handy given what had just happened with Crow. (It was later revealed to me that like the Crimson Dragon, the King of the Netherworld can help turn a duel around for their chosen duelists, but only if the duelist is passionate enough about that given duel, as was the case with Crow.)

"What do you think of a second job?" I smirked, secretly satisfied to see Kalins eyes widen like a startled cat as he understood what I implied.

" _You_ want to recruit _me?_ " Kalin was too surprised to be angry or insulted, "what gave you the idea?"

"Why not?" I smiled, "I need more people and you look like you could use some more disposable income, it's a win-win situation. At least give it a chance and hear me out." I added just in case.

"I suppose I can give you a chance, seeing as you're following my path. Revenge against Neo Domino would be most satisfying." He smiled back, his eyes remained untarnished by the darkness, reflecting light in its original golden hue.

"Exactly what path do you think I'm following?" I asked skeptically, temporarily derailed from my original plan. Sometimes it's good to hear feedback from an impartial observer to learn how the rest of the world sees you.

"It's obvious, isn't it?" Kalin reached an arm around my shoulder in what could almost be described as a one-armed hug, "it's a path to overthrow Neo Domino, to take over the City, to give control of the Satellite back to the satellite and build this place from the ground up."

I facepalmed. That can't really be how people think of me!

"I don't know how to tell you this," I sighed, "but that's _really_ not what I'm doing. Not even remotely."

"You can't claim to want to run a small business," Kalin said sarcastically, "you can't even fool the Sector with that."

"No, that's not it either, "I admitted, then focused on the real issue here, "but I'm _not_ trying to overthrow Neo Domino, it's not possible at this stage."

"Of course not," Kalin read way too much into my words "we will be patient, you have to wait till you take over all of Satellite first. I failed, but that doesn't mean you will, you can destroy the Sector once and for all."

"I can't! Domino City wouldn't concede to losing Satellite just because you beat them in a couple of card games! They have armies! Like trained soldiers with _actual_ weapons, that kill people. Unarmed, untrained, barely motivated civilians can't defeat the federal army, there's no mind-over-matter with this."

"That doesn't mean we should just give up and resign to our fate, we need to keep fighting no matter what" Kalin clung onto his ideals, "I was stabbed in the back, but if you pick the right time, get enough support and don't get involved with traitors-"

"No!" I've been saying that to him a lot, "you really don't get it do you? To overthrow the Domino government by force requires a group capable of overpowering Sector Security. I know you don't think they're much, but they have mobility, numbers, technology, logistics, weapons, ammunition, training, and the backing of the rest of the country on their side." I could go on but I think i made my point, "We have uneducated kids in the Satellite."

Kalin still looked unconvinced, I sighed exasperatedly.

"Okay, let's have it your way. Let's assume for a minute, that by some miracle, you do manage to drive Sector Security out of the Satellite, what then? They have _food_ , and water, and employment, and energy, and you know, _food_! What are we going to _feed_ people once the Neo Domino support is cut off? Then there's transportation, trade, even Sector Security. Yes, even Sector Security is necessary to this dump. We can't possibly _run_ a city, it's ridiculous even to think that!"

The current social structure, however problematic, has stabilized. It would be foolish to destroy it without a ready replacement. Neo Domino does less than the bare minimums for the Satellite, but it still keeps the place running, which is more than I could even begin to fathom. Or so I thought.

I didn't know how wrong I was, but then again, I was limited by my understanding of science and technology, which used to take incredible amounts of research and resources back in my reality.

"They didn't think anybody could rid of the Satellite of duel gangs either," Kalin said simply.

Cute. The 'nothing's impossible until you try' bit, but there're degrees of impossibility and all attempts have consequences. In this case, worse if we succeed than fail.

You don't have to be a genius to think up 101 ways Tokyo, aka the _federal_ government could obliterate a self-proclaimed rebel site located completely within its borders. And then there's Momentum. All Domino has to do is shut off power for two days and the people of the Satellite would hand over Kalin's head (or mine if I tried it) on a stick. Surrounded by hostile states and with no resources, if this was a game of Civilization or Red Alert and I had cheat codes, I'd probably still die.

"This is a _little_ more complicated," I said in the understatement of the century. "Destruction is simple, but creating and maintaining something is much more challenging. And neither of us are cut out for stuff like that."

"It doesn't have to be. Sure, most of the satellites have never set foot outside this dump, but together, we can change the world!"

"Technically true," I admitted. Technically true as in statistically speaking, he has a better chance of winning the lottery, "But that's not your case. There is no 'together'. You had a crew of 4 people, and three of them were completely against the idea of taking over the Satellite." Just like the necessity of education, I can't properly explain the need for an organized structure in a local government. I do know that a single person would not be enough.

"Then what's your plan?" Kalin asked angrily, "Waiting peacefully until Sector Security locks you behind bars? That's the argument you're using to convince me to join you?"

He was right to a point. It's likely that Neo Dominos, more specifically Rex Goodwin would indefinitely detain our little group if he suspected we were attempting to take control of the Satellite. Or arrange for our accidents in a timely manner, though in Goodwin's mind, that might require more time than us satellites were worth. Either way, we'd probably be screwed. That's where knowing the plot comes in. Goodwin might last another couple of months, I just have to escape his notice before then, and escape Satellite immediately after. Kalin's help is really just a backup, in case I needed to duel anybody with magically-enhanced skills again.

"Our chance lies with Tokyo," I replied confidently, "If Satellite becomes profitable enough, Tokyo would naturally want to gain direct control over the city rather than having its revenues be monopolized by Domino. Then we just need a petition, the right national propaganda, and we can cut ties with Domino City for good."

This alternative method of freeing the Satellite from Domino control might be the most practical if it weren't for the magical elements in this dimension. Though much more difficult to execute than winning a few card games, I don't need to execute it, I just need to convince Kalin that I could, so he would do my biddings (to a limited degree) until the whole Dark Signer arc blows over.

Kalin's eyes shone like the stars as he listened. For the first time, somebody told him a viable way to improving the Satellite. Escaping to Domino City wasn't going to work, even if it did, the Enforcers would be stuck in back alleys running from the Sector for the rest of their lives. Fixing up the Satellite hadn't worked, and he couldn't defeat Sector Security, even though he still believes had he succeeded, he might have changed the Satellite completely.

"And you think you can do this?" Kalin demanded, grabbing me by the wrist. He looked almost predatory, his eyes trained on me, studying my every micro-expression, trying to gage the truth of my words.

"Give me two years," I smirked. The Dark Signer arc starts in less than 6 months, and I thought I'd have no need for Kalin after that.

Kalin nodded forcefully, "Whatever you-"

He was cut off by our front door being banged open, looking out my window, I could see the teenager standing tall in the front yard in a simple blue jacket and black pants, towering over Vincent despite being almost half a foot shorter.

"I'm here for my friend," The teen announced his presence confidently, addressing the entire house as Teddy hid himself behind the large redhead and both retreated in fear.

"Yusei." I recognized immediately. Right, I guess that makes sense. Of course he'd show up, Greiger grabbed Crow in broad daylight, that news is bound to spread. I would have remembered that if I hadn't been preoccupied with the whole 'a magical lizard deity had predetermined the outcomes of my children's card games, and likely my entire fate and the Fate of Humanity' thing.

"Yusei!" I heard Kalin behind me. The ex-leader of the Enforcers recognized his teammate also, his eyes immediately clouded with darkness, obscuring its original golden hue, as his speech turned into a screech.

Two Signers, one light one dark, dueling it out in my front yard (I assume, since Yusei didn't have a runner with him), both attracted here by actions of my own doing (undoing?), so much for not attracting any attention. Rex Goodwin would be amiss if he didn't arrest me to reduce the uncontrolled variables in his global domination attempt. And I don't even want to consider what would happen if Kalin didn't want to toy with Yusei this time and defeated him outright.

 _Plonk, plump._

I looked back in surprise, and saw Chaos sitting up in my bed, holding an unconscious Kalin. The newest Domino fugitive scooted over in bed and carefully moved Kalin to a lying position beside himself. I couldn't help feeling a little sorry for Kalin, though I will admit it has been very effective in stopping him.

"I thought you might not want them to duel it out right here," Chaos grinned, "They have a history, it won't end well. Kessler will be fine, he should be awake in a couple of hours."

… On the one hand, I appreciated the gesture, it probably saved me a trip to the Facilities. On the other, who's gonna duel Yusei now? I was just trounced by Crow!

"You're feeling better," I said instead, not wanting to worry him when he just escaped Domino control.

"Domino City had to treat my injuries before they could inflict more," Chaos said briefly, "I woke up when he was struggling to carry me up the stairs. I didn't want to let Kessler know, in case he wanted to try something. What happened?"

Excellent question.

"Don't worry about it, just focus on getting better for now." I didn't have time for this, I needed to get rid of Yusei Fudo before he shuts the entire factory floor down.

"Was it true?" Chaos asked with a caution that was very unlike him, "what you said about Tokyo, and freeing this place from Domino control?"

"God no," I laughed, while I could fool Kalin, there's no point lying to the people around me. Long term decisions like that would affect every step of future decision making, "To escape from Domino and fall into Tokyo's clutches? There's a better way, trust me. I'll fix this place up until it's the envy of Domino City, you have my word." I felt like I owed him that, I also felt like I could do it. Not a succinct plan yet, but a rough idea, a futuristic Silicon Valley is beginning to build up in my mind.

"What do you want to do with Fudo?" Chaos asked, changing the subject as he struggled to get up. Being conscious is still very different from being well.

"I'll take care of it," I assured him with much more confidence than I felt, "go back to bed, and keep Kalin with you."

* * *

"Nervin?" Rally studied the visitor carefully, "is it just you?"

Blitz and Tank had finally filled him in on Nervin's whereabouts and activities.

"Nervin!" Tank greeted the spider-haired man with a tight smile.

"What's wrong?" Nervin asked urgently, "you said Yusei needed my help right now, I came as soon as I could."

"Yusei went to save Crow," Blitz replied solemnly. The two adults in Yusei's crew had planned on making up an excuse to get Nervin back, and try to convince Nervin to rejoin their group. Neither of them expected to hear the news this morning of Crow having gone missing, "he's been kidnapped by the Magicians."

"Yeah," Rally added, "aren't those the people you're staying with, Nervin?"

Nervin remembered back to his brief, interrupted conversation with Crow last night uncomfortably, "Crow's fine, Yuki's just working some stuff out." He was pretty sure.

Truth is, even before leaving these tunnels, he had forced himself to be optimistic about Yusei's plan for some time. Not able to save the Satellite, all they could do was save themselves, at least that's what he told himself. So when an alternative came along, he followed it on the spur of the moment. The plan had been coming along as his new neon-green-haired gang leader promised, and he would trust Yuki with his life. On the other hand, that doesn't mean he trusted her completely. She always looked like she's hiding something, has an ulterior motive of some sort. It's become an open secret within their little group, and part of him felt like his current group was sitting on a ticking time bomb, just a matter of time before the whole thing explodes. To begin with, how did a girl who was obviously accustomed to the finer thing (insert Yuki's sobs here) in life end up in the Satellite?

"So this new girl's in charge," Blitz noted.

"Yeah well, this new girl kidnapped Crow, and now all the kids he takes care of disappeared too." Tank said, determined to reveal to Nervin the evils of his new gang.

"Yusei left to get them out," Blitz informed him, "Can you get them back?" Blitz wasn't optimistic about Nervin's status in this new secret organization, but if Nervin was willing to at least try, it meant he was still on their side.

"I think so," Nervin answered, he wasn't sure what Yuki wanted with Crow or any of the others she had apparently taken against their will, nor if he had enough influence on her to get her to release them, so he wasn't going to try. The Magicians trust him enough that he could just go in and let everybody out, the confrontation would have to come after so to avoid raising any alarm.

"Ah, I see you got the nerd back, so now it's three on three," Nervin turned, startled by the grating voice, to see its owner, a younger man in his early twenties, nondescript except for a Facilities tattoo and his cocky attitude.

He looked back at Tank and Blitz, both of whom were alarmed at the intruder.

"Get out of here Lenny," Blitz said more pleadingly than threatening, "we don't want any trouble."

"I'm just here to collect," The blue-haired young man sauntered over as though it was his own territory, "you know, I hear you guys got a duel runner down here."

"It's none of your business," Tank summoned up what courage he could and blocked Lenny's way, trying to hide the duel runner from view. Yusei worked for over a year on that runner, he wasn't going to let it get stolen again.

"But it is," Lenny sniggered, "you see, I think I'll let you pay me back with the runner instead a new pair of shoes."

"Yeah!" A large redhead flanking Lenny said, "because of you guys, they docked our pay! Now you're gonna pay us back!"

"What happened?" Nervin turned to Rally.

"That's Lenny, he tripped Tank and Blitz after work, and now he wants them to buy him new shoes," Rally replied in a frightened whisper.

"Look," Blitz stood in front of the runner also, "we have plenty of cards here, you can take whatever you want, just leave the runner."

Nervin felt unexpectedly uncomfortable with the scene, made worse by the realization that Tank and Blitz were acting exactly the same way he would have a week ago. In the past couple of days since he began living above ground, he had seen more of the Satellite than the couple of years before that, and arguably done more too. Working with Chaos and Vincent, he had gotten used to their philosophy of being the source of the problem rather than the target. In short, he refuses to take this crap anymore. It also helped that he knew if he did get into any sort of trouble, Yuki would raise hell to get him out.

"Why?" Nervin stood up from his customary place on the armchair. "Blitz, if you and Tank and take Skinny Lenny here, I can take the fat one." He ignored the short, hunched over brunet on the side, the poor man looked like he could barely stand.

"We can't!" Blitz protested anxiously, "what if they reveal the duel runner to the Sector."

"Yeah!" the redhead concurred loudly, the idea obviously just occurred to him, "give us the runner, or we'll report you to the Sector."

His logic make Nervin's head spin.

"I can make sure that they can't," he assured Blitz confidently, then reeled back in surprise at the omnious implications of his own words and the look on the faces of his audience.

"Le-let's not be hasty," Lenny said quickly, "I'm from Domino City you know, a lot of people would be upset if something happened to me. Tell them Lug"

"Yeah!" The redhead, Lug, supplemented, "a lot of important people!"

"Then you'd never end up here," Nervin decided to bluff this out, "I assure you, your body would rot before anybody realized you went missing."

Lenny gritted his teeth, looking at the runner with both longing and fear, "how about we duel for the runner then, to the winner goes the spoils."

"The runner's not up for debate," Nervin replied decisively, "if you win, we'll pay you back for the shoes and let you leave. If I win," he hesitated, there's really very little he'd want from his opponent, then he remembered who might, "if I win, you come with me, there's something I want you to do." The plant is coming up with a new line of products to better compensate the loss from giving away the Murray WGs, so some insight from an ex-resident of Domino City might be useful.

"Fine then, but we'll duel in tag teams," Lenny suggested shrewdly, recognizing Nervin as the only one yearning for a duel, "two on two, Lug and I will take on any two of you rejects."

"Yeah boss! We'll show them what you're made of!" Lug pumped a fist up in the air.

"Of course we will," His boss, Lenny replied, "Trash is trash, and you have to know your place. Today's your lucky day, 'cause I'm going to show you garbage in the Satellite what dueling is all about."

The third smaller man stood hunched over at the side, and laughed "teeheeheeheehee."

Nervin wasn't surprised that nobody made a fuss over that comment, he was however, surprised at how much that comment bothered him.

"Boss' right you know," Lug added confidently, as though his boss' comment didn't include him. "We're stuck in this misery where we belong, but he wasn't born into this, he has a future."

"Teeheeheeheehee," The third member of their gang laughed again, Nervin grumbled quietly in annoyance.

"Blitz, take my deck," Nervin offered his new Monarch deck to his friend, leaving himself with his old Gadget deck. Monarch decks are pretty easy to use, and with what he now knows, he can see Blitz as an excellent duelist, if a little reserved and overly cautious. "I have a backup, let's take these two on."

Blitz had been watching Nervin's exchange with their visitor silently, he nodded with determination, and stood beside Nervin.

"Alright then," Nervin said, holding out his duel disk, "it's time to duel!" Nervin had begun using the expression for good luck almost as soon as he heard it from Yuki, supposedly it was first started by the King of Games himself.

* * *

 **Turn 1, Lug's Turn; Lug/Lenny 4000, Nervin/Blitz 4000**

"I'll start," Lug drew a card without waiting for his opponents to protest, "I summon, Danipon (600/600, when destroyed by battle and sent to grave, add 1 insect monster with 1000 def or less to hand), in defense mode and end my turn"

 **Turn 2, Nervin's Turn; Lug/Lenny 4000, Nervin/Blitz 4000**

"That's it?" Nervin laughed, trying to pass on his confidence to his friend. "I discard Green Gadget and Machina Fortress to special summon, Machina Fortress to the field! Next, I summon Red Gadget, in attack mode. Red Gadget, destroy Danipon!"

The little larva-looking thing was destroyed, using its special effect, Lug brought an insect monster, Grasshopper (lv7, 2350/1000) into his hand.

"Now Machina Fortress, attack them directly," Nervin ordered. Lug struggled against the impact created by the hologram, and Lenny was forced to take a few steps back. Their LP dropped to 1500. "I finish my turn by placing two cards facedown."

He was no longer the newb who would put traps down at the beginning of a turn.

Blitz gasped at the results. None of them had focused on dueling, and just sort of assumed it wasn't something they would be good at. This new side of Nervin was something he had never seen before.

 **Turn 3, Lenny's Turn; Lug/Lenny 1500, Nervin/Blitz 4000**

"Don't count your cards yet!" Lenny muttered darkly, adjusting his collar. Nervin looked at Lenny's almost-new jacket, then at his crew's tattered clothing that Yuki would no doubt label as 'wouldn't sell in a thrift store', and thought back to himself. It's funny what you notice when somebody gives you a fresh perspective.

"Now it's my turn! First, I summon Pinch Hopper to the field (1000/1200), next, I'll activate Retribution of the Antlion. Now every time a monster is destroyed, its controller takes 800 damage!"

"For my next move, I activate Dark Hole!" Lenny exclaimed victoriously. He lost 800LP while Nervin lost double that as all three monsters on the field were destroyed. "When my Pinch Hooper is destroyed, I can special summon an insect monster from my hand, and I choose, Metal Armored Bug (lv8, 2800/1500), in attack mode!"

"And just in case that won't finish you off, I'll summon this," Lenny countered, "Doom Dozer (2800/2600), in attack mode! I can special summon him by banishing two insect monster from my graveyard! Now, my insects, attack!"

"I activate," Nervin announced, "Windstorm of Etaqua! It changes the battle position of all your monsters, so your bugs are stuck in defense mode this turn!"

"I place two cards face-down and end my turn. So you got a lucky hit, scum like you can never stand up to my mighty insects!" Lenny bragged, his insects roared in response.

 **Turn 4, Blitz's Turn; Lug/Lenny 700, Nervin/Blitz 2400**

"Look at the size of those things!" Blitz exclaimed, obviously impressed. "How am I going to defeat that?"

"We still have 2400 LP, and they only have 700," Nervin rolled his eyes, "plus you have a fresh hand. This should be a piece of cake."

"We don't have any monsters powerful enough to take him on!" Tank complained from the sidelines for all to hear. Nervin couldn't help but wonder if he had been that pessimistic also.

Nervin knew that there were at least 10 cards in Blitz's deck that can win the duel, after all, both of Lenny's monsters were in defense mode, and Metal Armored Bug only had 1500 defense, not to mention the numerous monster destruction cards. Their opponent only had 700LP left, any monster destroyed would sent him over the edge. But he didn't say anything. A tag duel, he believed, was a test of _both_ duelists, having one duelist dictate the duel went against the spirit of the game. It's a matter of honor, which he tries to defend (except during his first tag duel, which he reluctantly admitted, he was scared senseless).

"I place one monster facedown and one face-down card," Blitz said, "and I'll end my turn.

 **Turn 5, Lug's Turn; Lug/Lenny 700, Nervin/Blitz 2400**

"Hahaha, it's my turn again. Thanks boss, for leaving me all these powerful monsters. Now I'll finish them off for you .First, I switch both of my monsters into attack mode, then I summon, Insect Knight (lv4, 1900/1500)."

"Activate trap," Blitz flipped over the facedown card he just placed, "Bottomless Traphole, which destroys your monster."

"No! We lost!" Lenny exclaimed, then looked around confused as he saw his life points standing at 700, "what happened? Why didn't we lose?"

"Bottomless Trap Hole banishes the destroyed card instead of sending it to the graveyard, so Retribution of Ant Lion's effect is not activated," Nervin felt compelled to explain. Feeling a little disappointed at the stupidity of his opponent.

"That's okay, because boss still has his monsters on the field, Metal Armored Bug, attack!"

"I activate," Nervin was glad to see Blitz activate his facedown trap, "Negate Attack, which stops your monster and ends Battle Phase." Blitz said, relieved.

"Then I'll put a card face-down too, and I'll end my turn." Lug responded as Lenny's face darkened. With Retribution of the Antlion of the field, he'd lose the rest of his life points if any monster was destroyed.

 **Turn 6, Nervin's Turn; Lug/Lenny 700, Nervin/Blitz 2400**

"I play, Giant Trunade, which returns all spell and trap cards on the field to the hand." Nervin started off cautiously.

"Then I think I'll activate my trap, Waboku," Lenny smirked, Nervin was reminded of Yuki emphasizing this card's superiority over Negate Attack because of its chainability. "When this card is activated, none of my monsters can be destroyed this turn and I take no damage! And next turn, next turn I'll destroy you!"

"We're doomed!" Tank cowered on the side, acting like an anti-cheerleader, "We can't destroy any of his monsters this turn, and next turn, they'll crush us!" As if sensing his fear, the giant pill bug turned its head towards the audience and waved its pincers menacingly.

"Hardly," Nervin grinned, there were no more spells or traps on the field, so he could carry out his plan. Waboku does have its weakness, in that it still allowed the battle phase to proceed, "I discard Yellow Gadget and Green Gadget to special summon from the graveyard, Machina Fortress in attack position."

"Did you forget the trap card I just played?" Lenny taunted, "Not only is your monster is weaker than mine, none of my monsters can be destroyed this turn!"

"True," Nervin admitted, "but my monsters can. Machina Fortress, attack Doom Dozer!"

The giant machine charged and was sliced cleanly in two by Lenny's insect. The 300 difference in attack, plus 800 damage from Lenny's spell card, dealt a total of 1100 damage.

"Now, when my monster is destroyed by battle, its special ability allows me to destroy one monster on the field, and I choose your Metal Armored Bug. Because this is a card effect, it's not affected by your trap card."

"So what?" Lenny countered, "I still have my Doom Dozer on the field, and it's going to finish you off next turn."

Nervin blinked, "As part of Retribution of the Antlion's effect," he enunciated every word slowly, explaining Lenny's card back to him,"it deals 800 damage to the controller when a monster's destroyed."

As if on cue, the large pill bug's shell cracked, then burst into greenish goo, which quickly disappeared. A giant mutated ant crawled out of the spell card, and bit its owner, decreasing Lenny's LP to 0.

* * *

"So, he got defeated by his own card?" Rally was amazed, Nervin was a little pleased to be the target of admiration from the youngest member of their group and tried his best to hide it.

"I-" Lenny collapsed onto the ground, while his lackeys rushed to his side. No more 'teeheehees' were heard.

"Stop by the water plant tomorrow," Nervin instructed, proud at winning his first solo duel (yes Blitz was involved too, but Nervin chose to ignore that), "you don't want to make me look for you."

Lenny nodded. These Domino types always try to be honorable, if not, the threat should suffice.

"So, you're moving on to greener pastures?" Blitz asked bitterly upon realizing Nervin had no intentions of staying.

"I have something bigger to fight for now." Nervin explained as a way of apologizing, "This is more than you, or me or Yusei or even leaving the Satellite. We're trying to change this town so people don't need to escape anymore, I can't just abandon this."

"So you're abandoning us and our plans instead." Blitz pointed out.

"Come on," Nervin grinned teasingly, "Let's admit it, it's not that good of a plan. First of all, even after Yusei left, how is he going to come back without being caught by security? Are we really counting on Jack's morals?"

"And your new gang's better?" Blitz pressed him further, hiding his irritation. They were all vaguely aware of the flaws in their plan, but none of them dared pointing it out for fear of bursting the only bubble they had.

"I think we'll have enough sway to arrange for Yusei's ride back." Nervin replied, smiling widely. With great power comes great responsibility. But at the same time, great responsibility usually also means powers that comes with people depending on you for their daily lives. As the water generators spread through the Satellite, Yuki might gain influence even she didn't expect.

"Nervin?" Tank asked, as though seeing their nerdy friend for the first time. After leaving for less than a week, Nervin had changed beyond recognition. Tank couldn't quite name it, but he does think Nervin reminds him a little of how Yusei acts. The blue-haired man stood a little straighter, laughed a little louder, sounded a little surer, wasn't as scared of the Sector, and did a little more about what went on around him. _If Nervin's group does this to everybody who joins,_ Tank thought hard, but he couldn't predict what the outcome would be, _but it's probably a good thing,_ he finally decided, _and it might be dangerous to get in their way._

"If Yusei's at our headquarters, I'll get him back," Nervin promised.

* * *

Elsewhere in the Satellite, Greiger reported Crow Hogan and Yusei Fudo's appearance to Rex Goodwin through a secret messaging system.

Elsewhere in the Satellite, Roman Goodwin sent out his spiders, securing the assistance he would need in this upcoming battle.

Elsewhere in the Satellite, Divine listened, annoyed, at the reports of this new group (they haven't even named themselves yet, amateurs) rapidly gaining support, even a few of their own members seemed swayed by their rhetoric.

Elsewhere in the Satellite, though not in the same dimension, the Crimson Dragon waited for the last chance this dimension has, the chance it sacrificed everything to secure.

* * *

 **A/N:** As you may or may not have noticed, this story started out as a long rant about the 5D's series, the Enforcers is one of those rants. If I had a week I couldn't list all the reasons Kalin's 'let's take over the Satellite' attempt wouldn't work.

 **A/N 2** : Dark Signers do retain some of their original personality and desires, it's just overshadowed by their desire for revenge. So Kalin still does want to free the Satellite, but not nearly as much as he wants revenge against Yusei.

 **A/N 3:** I never could understand why Yusei's crew doesn't seem to duel at all, it's not exactly a hard game, and Yusei clearly has more than one deck. I had to put it to the whole 'know your place' thing, which Nervin finally broke out of. Oh and I wrote the duel and didn't want to delete it so this chapter's a little longer.

 **A/N 4:** Btws, I named this chapter "How to Free the Satellite" because it's not Kalin's ridiculous 'duel a way out' attempt, or even Yuki's only-slightly-more-likely "Silicon Valley" idea, but rather through changing the thought patterns and behaviors of people like Nervin, that the Satellite can manage to save itself. Any substantial hange needs to be effected by the majority.


	15. Fate and Exodia

**Disclaimer** : I do not own YGO 5ds.

 **A/N:** I forgot Jack took Yusei's Stardust Dragon... So I had to rewrite a whole new duel for Crow instead. Sorry about that, if you're rereading this, I tweaked the earlier parts and added the duel with Crow.

* * *

I reluctantly trudged towards the stairs and was met by the Magicians half way.

"Just let Hogan go, it'll get rid of Fudo." Vincent advised as I walked as slowly as I could towards the inevitable, "the Enforcers are just too good."

"Back in their prime, they were unbeatable. They were like gods. You're good Yuki, but we mortals just don't stand a chance." Felice added, presumably to comfort me.

She's right. Ever since the original YGO series, mortals never stood a chance against the magically-gifted. No mortal has ever won against somebody with magic, not even once! And the Signers have the Crimson Dragon on their side, which pretty much represents the most powerful magical entity in this dimension. Then again, my eyes lit up like a light bulb, maybe I could get a god on my side!

I can't possibly tell them anything revealing for fear of either Goodwins overhearing. But I was of course, thinking of an Exodia deck. According to the original (okay, second) series, Exodia is supposedly an Egyptian God. I would have preferred the actual Egyptian gods cards, but then I have to rob Yami Yugi's grave first.

"Get Yusei inside," I instructed Vincent, "Stall. I don't care what you do, just keep him busy. There's something I need to try first."

Vincent shook his head firmly, "Sorry Yuki, but it's _Yusei Fudo_ ," Vincent said as though it was an explanation, ' _the_ Yusei Fudo."

"We've all been completely destroyed by their duel gang at one time or another," Felice admitted reluctantly. And now I've joined their ranks, perfect.

"I'll go meet Yusei!" Teddy offered, "I'm not scared of him! You guys shouldn't be either. We don't have to duel him, we'll just beat him up, there's more of us!" He said energetically, his brown bangs bouncing up and down as he spoke with a wide-eyed innocence. This kid really needs better role models, hopefully Greiger had higher moral standards than the Magicians.

"I'll go meet him," I grumbled, I wanted to duel Crow again to test out my theory. No, I _needed_ to test out my theory before all else. If Fate in this world is indeed predetermined by a non-human, non-physical entity from another dimension, I might as well roll over and give up now, or at least adjust my plans significantly. Yusei didn't get his Stardust Dragon back yet (as was pointed out to me), so he might not be an accurate representation of the effect of Exodia against the Crimson Dragon.

"What?" Was the collective response.

"You'll lose! Fudo is even stronger than Crow" Cyril was too surprised to pull back any punches.

"I'm not going to duel him, I'm testing something out," I explained dismissively, "namely what kind of gods could change the outcomes of our little card games." They looked at me like I was crazy. Such was the burden of knowledge.

"Um…" My eyes searched the room, and failed to find anybody who could help me stall Yusei Fudo while I built my deck. I can't really let Teddy do it, Yusei would get whatever secrets we had out out of him and walk out the front door. "Let's go meet the legendary Yusei Fudo."

* * *

"And that was the Legendary Jack Atlas ladies and gentlemen!" The MC's voice rang out in the stadium to the thunderous applause of thousands of cheering fans as Jack exited the duel arena, leaving behind yet another opponent in the dust.

"That was amazing Atlas-sama," His chatty little assistant Mina circled him like a mother hen, fluttering about babbling nonsense he never listened to. Of course he was amazing, he was Jack Atlas.

"Hmph," Jack responded as he sidestepped Mina like she was a particularly unsightly plant he had forgotten to move to the basement.

"Wait, Atlas-sama, where are you going? You have an 11:30 appointment with Angela Raines from Daily Duels, she's waiting for you by the arena right now." Mina protested weakly as she struggled to follow Jack's long strides, "You can't just leave? Atlas-sama!"

"I go where I want," Jack replied coolly as he made his way back to the car to get to Rex Goodwin's office, "and I'm not going to do a stupid interview. All the public needs to know is that I'm the King, and will always be the King." Why did they need to know his favorite color or what kind of girls he liked anyways?

"Atlas-sama!" Mina protested in vain as she followed Jack back towards the car.

"Please Jack," Lazar had been waiting at the exit and blocked the way of the tall blond, gesturing for Jack to go back to the stadium, "it is hardly becoming of the great Jack Atlas to abandon an appointment like this."

Jack scowled but did condescend to provide the Vice Director a response, "I have better ways to spend my time, I'm going to talk to Goodwin about stop sending me those pathetic excuses for a duelist as my opponents. They're an insult to the game and to me personally."

"You don't need to trouble yourself with such trivial matters Jack, allow me to take care of that for you" Lazar smiled thinly and continued even as Jack relented to his request and was beginning to walk back, "Now please, tend to your responsibilities like an adult, even Yusei Fudo is acting more mature than this." It was a weak ploy, Lazar knew, but it's more than enough. The words 'Yusei Fudo' was like catnip for Atlas.

"What do you know about Yusei?" Jack whirled around and demanded angrily, the spin on his trench coat would have made Seto Kaiba proud.

"Ah," Lazar hid his superior smirk under a cheesy smile, "Yusei Fudo is building his own duel runner, our sources in the Satellite tell us he had just finished."

"Yusei built another duel runner?" The question escaped Jack before he could stop himself, he always knew Yusei was good, but he didn't know his previous companion was this good.

"Just a couple of days ago in fact," Lazar replied lazily. The honorable Rex Goodwin had tasked his Vice Director with the inane job of stirring up animosity between Jack Atlas and Yusei Fudo again, preferably such that Jack would make a move against the Satellite teenager. How tension between the Domino city King of Duels and a Satellite street punk would affect anything, Lazar couldn't imagine, but a job is a job, and this doesn't even make it to top 100 of the weirdest things he's done for Goodwin.

"That's just like Yusei..." Jack replied vaguely, his eyes lost their usual steely focus, and glazed over in remembrance.

"Yes," Lazar answered, drawing Jack closer to his web, "Director Goodwin is concerned that Yusei Fudo might be planning something against you, so he sent me to check up on you just in case."

Of course Yusei would want to find him, Jack reflected, for his Stardust Dragon and his rematch. But that's no problem, Jack beat him once, Jack will beat him again.

"Just between you and me, Jack," Getting no response, Lazar leaned in a little closer, "I say we fix this before it becomes a problem. Why should we let this minor pest manifest? Dueling you isn't a right, it's a privilege. Yusei doesn't deserve to duel the King anymore."

"I'll listen to what you have to say," Jack tried to hide his interest. He wasn't sure why he was interested, he had certainly never planned on doing Yusei any harm. But even the thought of Yusei coming to find him, Yusei revealing the truth about his past, Yusei dragging him back into that hellhole, it was too much for Jack to stand.

"Well, if we just offer the right bait," Lazar smiled again. Hook, line and sinker, just as he expected. Jack Atlas was an open book. No wonder he had to hand pick the 'King's' opponents.

* * *

The strongest duelist in this dimension stood at my front door.

I walked forward while the rest of the crew flanked me. Or more precisely, while the rest of those cowards tried to huddle behind me. Making my way once again to the production floor, which was now completely silent, as our underage workers stood in awe of the intruder.

The teen standing at the door had wild black-hair somehow dyed yellow despite the lack of hair dye in the Satellite, the single person who made my entire business cower. The name that inspired endless hope and fear in the Satellite.

"Yusei Fudo," I said with a broad smile, opening my arms welcomingly. I had debated how I was to greet the Star of the Satellite. Goodwill might anger Rex Goodwin, the man whom, as I constantly reminded myself, could lock me up permanently; hostility risks losing the possible friendship and favor of _the_ protagonist, the Chosen One, especially considering he's probably pissed enough as it is. I finally decided I'd take my chances with Rex Goodwin, surely as the Director of Neo Dominos, he wouldn't have that much time to spare on a small Satellite start-up. "Welcome to my humble abode."

"I want my friend, Tono, and I want him now!" Yusei demanded, staring directly at me and ignoring everybody behind me.

"Crow Hogan I presume," I said smoothly, "of course. I kept him a little longer because I had some questions about dueling I wanted resolved, that's all."

"Then let him go now!" Yusei repeated his request loudly. Smart kid. Instead of debating the merits of my keeping Crow against his will (I still don't like to call it kidnapping), he focused on what he wanted to avoid an argument he couldn't win.

"Well, com'on in, he's right this way." I gestured towards the back of the factory and walked in. Realizing I was going to pass him, therefore leaving him the closest to Yusei, Cyril raced towards the backdoor. The rest of my entirely-reliable, totally-won't-desert-me gang followed Cyril's example. Instead of leading the way, I was now bringing up the rear.

I didn't need to look back to see Yusei hesitating at the entrance. He could still leave now, but he might not get another chance to leave if he entered the building, _my_ building. Of course, everybody who worked for me were a part of a duel gang and therefore terrified of him, except maybe for Nervin, who might have been able to prevent this scene had he been here, but he's off on some personal business, for real this time. After a brief pause, Yusei entered the building as I knew he would. In several long strides, he caught up to me, walking close enough to grab me as a hostage if necessary. Vincent was the only person who stayed within the 2 meter vacuum Yusei formed around us, the redhead felt obligated to protect me, as the strongest of the group.

"I'm afraid I'll need to keep you and Crow here for a while," I started, Yusei grew a little stiffer, but didn't make a move. "there's an experiment I need to finish with Crow, and I couldn't just leave you at the door."

"I'll duel you then," Yusei said simply, "if I win, you let Crow go." I could feel the heat of his gaze on me. I kept looking straight.

"And if you lose?" I teased. Of course I'd let them go, what was I supposed to do with two teenagers destined to save the world?

"Then I'll stay here for him," Yusei answered, taking my question so seriously it was beginning to sound really tempting. And without his Stardust Dragon, I might actually have a chance. To keep (coughimprisoncough) Yusei indefinitely... Those blue eyes, the uncomfortably tight pants, at the prime of his youth as evidenced by that mouth-watering physique. Of course, the most attractive quality about Yusei is his loyalty. I've always thought he was a little like a German Sheppard, I've always wanted a German Sheppard.

No, keeping people is wrong. I reprimanded myself firmly. I must not let greed get in the way of bigger plans.

Breath in, breath out. Now repeat after me, I have no interest in dueling Yusei, I have no interest in dueling Yusei, I have no interest in dueling Yusei.

If I lose, I end up, well, being the loser. Even if I win, I end up antagonizing the protagonist, and it serves nothing to further my current goal of 'Find Out How the F* A Supernatural Force is Messing With My Life'. It's called priorities, so Yusei would just have to wait. More specifically, I would be unable to differentiate Yusei's loss from me using Exodia or the absence of his Stardust Dragon.

For now, I need to duel Crow again.

"We'll see," I replied instead. I walked into the same hallway and opened the door opposite Crow's room. "Stay here, I'll be back."

"Where are you going?" Yusei stood just outside the room blocking my exit. The Magicians retreated to the far end of the hallway, except for Vincent who stood directly behind me, I could smell the sweat on his body. We distributed most of the Murray WGs we produced, so we don't yet have enough on hand to ensure everybody can shower daily.

"I need to fix up my deck," I replied, gesturing towards the room. "I shouldn't be too long."

"Where's Crow?" Yusei stood his ground stoically.

"You'll see him when our duel finishes," I assured him, technically, I was telling the truth, but I was referring to my duel with Crow instead of Yusei, "relax, why else would I want either one of you here?"

Yusei gave me a hard look, but seeing Vincent, who could easily overpower him, standing behind me, Yusei brushed past me and entered the second 'duel arena' in the building, slamming the door behind him.

The rest of the Magicians rushed up wide-eyed.

"I can't believe that's really Yusei!" Felice exclaimed in a hushed tone while Vincent tried to direct us away from the two doors that held either members of the Enforcers.

"You think he recognized us?" Teddy asked cautiously, Vincent had been hiding him so well I didn't even realize he was there.

"I can't tell," Cyril answered pensively, "I could never read Fudo or Kessler."

Ignoring the Magicians, I turned to the only person seemingly functional right now. "Galen, could you guard the doors for now?" The pink-haired teen nodded silently, only a slight quiver of his hands betrayed his fear and excitement. Yusei could probably knock him out with one punch, I can only hope he'd make enough noise to alert the others in the process.

I left to fix an Exodia deck, dragging Vincent behind me so he would oversee the factory floor. I was truly grateful that Greiger, the only one unaware of Yusei's conquests, was taking care of the younger kids. I had enough on my plate, if there were kids crying and running about, I'd just lose it. Maybe I'll save Greiger from being a Dark Signer as a sign of gratitude.

In order to fix up an Exodia deck, I raided (the still unconscious) Kalin's side decks to borrow what cards I could. All of my best cards are still at the Domino City impound. I ended up with a pseudo Shadoll-Exodia deck, I say pseudo because I had maybe 10 Shadoll monster cards, and while Shadoll decks are known for fusion summoning, I (Kalin) had no Shadoll extra deck monsters.

Exodia is one of those decks I never actually used, but contemplated numerous times for sentimental values. I kept on thinking that, being the first deck ever to be used in the series, it should be quite competitive if done correctly, and I'm disappointed every time. But now at least I have an idea what the build should be. It took a good hour and a half to test out a decent deck and have Felice set up a monitoring system behind Crow again. Not to look at his hand during the duel, but to assess the effects, if any, an Exodia deck has when facing a Signer. The goal is never victory, the goal is to test the of the powers of the Crimson Dragon, to find out how free a mortal really is, and how much of our fate is decided by the supernatural.

* * *

I went into the opposite door where Crow is kept (kept! :D), nudging the orange ball of hair that had just fallen asleep from our all-nighter.

"You again?" Crow mumbled, still groggy, "what do you want now?"

"I want a rematch." I said as though it was a legitimate demand after having lost 20 such rematches already. If my brain hadn't completely froze over the terror from the very plausible idea of a supernatural force dictating our lives, I might have stopped at duel # 10.

"Are you kidding me?" Crow asked incredulously, "again? At least let me sleep first."

"This is the last time I'll wake you up," I said half-sincerely. Half sincerely as in it would be the last time unless there's another idea I need to try.

"Fine, let's duel then. I can beat you when I'm asleep, and I can sleep when I beat you" Crow relented, seeing I wasn't going to leave him alone until he dueled me. "I'll crush you like every other duel we've had. Make your move," he said, yawning,"so I can go back to sleep."

* * *

 **Turn 1: Yuki's turn, Yuki: 4000, Crow : 4000**

I drew. Yay, monsters! This is a good start.

I had a reasonable distribution of monster and spell cards, no trap cards yet since I didn't add a lot of trap cards to increase the speed of the deck. Quite a few cards actually looked useful, very different from the hands I got in my previous duels. I breathed out a sigh of relief, it's great to be free from a magical force you can't even understand, if only temporarily. As long as there are no magical interference with my duels, how to win is my problem. Kalin had added quite a few decent anti-meta cards into his side decks, which are now in my deck. Without the Crimson Dragon's influence, I might actually have a chance, even when I'm using Exodia against a Blackwing deck.

"I play, Toon Table of Contents, which lets me select a 'Toon' card from my deck and add it to my hand, and I select another copy of Toon Table of Contents." For the first time since I dueled Crow, I could honestly say I had a pretty decent opening hand. I repeated the move two more times until I had a Toon Masked Sorcerer (lv4, 900/1400) in my hand.

"I place one card face down and activate the spell, Card Destruction." I already had one piece of Exodia in my hand and had discarded it to the graveyard, but hopefully, Crow wouldn't notice.

"When Shadoll Squamata (lv4, 1800/1000) is sent to the graveyard because of a card effect, I can send one more Shadoll monster from my deck to the grave, and I chose Shadoll Beast (lv5, 2200/1700). And when he goes to the grave, I can draw one more card from my deck. Next, I'll play Upstart Goblin, allowing me to draw one more card, even though you gain 1000LP."

"Wow, you must be planning something big if you're gonna let me get 1000LP," Crow commented, "no problem, I'll just beat you before then."

That's... I counted off my fingers, 10 cards in the graveyard. I still had 5 in my hand and 1 on the field, leaving only 24 cards in my deck, not bad for a first turn. For an Exodia deck though, the last piece is always, and I mean _always_ , at the very bottom of the deck. If your deck isn't empty, you're not going to win.

"I'll place one monster face-down and end my turn."I announced with confidence.

 **Turn 2: Crow's Turn, Yuki 4000, Crow 5000**  
"My turn then, finally." Crow smirked. "I'll start things off with a spell card, Blackwing Whirlwind, they call it that because every time I normal summon a monster, I can bring one more Blackwing from my deck to my hand, and all the extra monsters I get will crush you like a whirlwind. But then again, you already knew that." Crow can be a little obnoxious when he thinks you're the enemy (which technically, I was).

"I summon Blackwing Blizzard the Far North to the field (lv2, tuner, 1300/0)."

"I chain it with my Maxx "C"," I interrupted, knowing full well the effect of the Blackwing summoned, "now I get to draw one card for every monster you special summon." Of course I'd have a Maxx "C" when dueling against a Blackwing Deck.

"So you did learn something from all of our duels. That's right, this little birdie can revive one of his friends back from the grave, so say hello to Blackwing - Bora the Spear (lv4/800). Thanks to my Blackwing Whirlwind magic card, I can add one more Blackwing to my hand as long as it has less attack points, I think I'll pick Blackwing Gale the Whirlwind (lv3, tuner, 1300/500). When I have a Blackwing monster on the field, I can also special summon Gale the Whirlwind (lv3, tuner) to join his friends. I tune my lv 2 Blizzard the Far North with my Lv 4 Bora the Spear to Synchro Summon, Blackwing Armed Wing (lv6, 2300/1000). "

I drew one card for each of his 3 special summoned monsters.

"Now, Blackwing Armed Wing, show them your claws! Attack and destroy her facedown card! Oh, and I should mention, when this bird attacks a prey, he gains 500 attack and deals damage even though your monster is in defense mode." Crow smirked victoriously.

Shadoll Falco (lv2, tuner, 800/1400) is revealed, the poor bird made a tiny squeak before it was ripped to shreds by Crow's monstrous winged beast.

Since his synchro monster deals piercing damage, my LP decreased by 1400.

"When Shadoll Falco is flipped face up, I can bring another Shadoll monster from the graveyard in facedown defense position, so I'll put Shadoll Beast back onto the field."

Having only 1300 attack, Gale the Whirlwind didn't charge my facedown monster.

"I'll put 2 facedowns and leave it at that." Crow announced. He only had 2 card left in his hand, but that wouldn't last long if he draws into any more of the draw engines in his deck.

 **Turn 3: Yuki's Turn, Yuki 2600, Crow 5000**

Believe it or not, this has been far better than most of my duels with Crow. As far as I'm concerned, I got what I wanted. As long as I'm using an Exodia deck, the Crimson Dragon's effect is at least minimized, at least during the duel. I can do a lot of things with that knowledge.

"I flip summon Shadoll Beast," I pointed to my facedown monster, "his effect let's me draw two cards, and discard one from my hand. I'll discard Shadoll Squamata again, and this time select Shadoll Dragon (lv4, 1900/0) to discard from my deck into the graveyard. This way, I can destroy one of your facedown cards." Crow's trap was revealed to be Black Sonic, a trap that would banish all of my face up monsters if I attacked. The Blackwing archetype had a lot of powerful traps.

"I play the spell Allure of Darkness, which let's me banish one dark monster and draw two cards, I banish Shadoll Hedgehog from my hand." I told you the Crimson Dragon can't interfere with my hand anymore, I'd never get this lucky otherwise.

"Next, I activate Hand Destruction, we each discard two cards from our hand and draw two more." I discarded the second piece of Exodia. Even though I had 8 cards in my hand (well, 7 now), every one looked too good to be discarded.

"Now, Shadoll Beast, attack Gale the Whirlwind!" I commanded, wary of his trap card. And I was right.

"Nice move, too bad I'm always a step ahead! My trap Icarus Attack let's me tribute my Gale the Whirlwind to destroy both cards on your field." My Shadoll Beast, as well as my facedown card Dark Eruption (which would have let me bring an Exodia piece back from the grave) were destroyed.

"I summon Mathematician (lv3, 1500/500)," I anticipated a trap of some sort from Crow, so I left my normal summon till after the battle phase. Plus, Mathematician can't attack even if I summoned him earlier. "When he's normal summoned, I can discard one monster into my graveyard, so I discard Shadoll Falco to the grave. With his special effect, Shadoll Falco comes back onto the field in face-down defense mode. Next, I activate the spell, Messenger of Peace, this spell forbids any of our monsters with 1500 attack or over from attacking. I place one card facedown and end my turn."

I still had 5 cards in my hand, but that'll be enough for now.

13 cards left, I reminded myself, almost there

 **Turn 4: Crow's Turn, Yuki 2600, Crow 5000**

Crow drew again, now with 3 cards in his hand.

"First I normal summon Kalut the Moon Shadow, (lv4, 1400/1000), in attack mode. Blackwing Whirlwind now allows me to select one monster from my deck and add it to my hand, and I think I'll bring out another copy of Gale the Whirlwind (lv3, tuner, 1300/400). As you know, when there's a Blackwing friend on the field already, he just can't wait to get onto the field!"

Using monsters with less than 1500 attack I see.

"Now these birds have a special effect, every turn, they can cut any of your monster's attack in half. And since I have two of them, I can half two of your monsters' attack points. And lucky for me, they're both in attack mode."

My Shadoll Beast's attack was cut to 1100, while my Mathematician's attack was cut to 750.

"Now, Kalut the Moon Shadow, slice up her Shadoll Beast. And Gale the Whirlwind, destroy her Mathematician."

The two attacks dealt me a total of 950 damage.

"When my Mathematician is destroyed by battle, I get to draw one card." I added another card to my hand, Upstart Goblin, perfect.

"That's all for now." Knowing my facedown monster was Shadoll Falco (800/1400), Crow didn't attack with his second copy of Gale the Whirlwind (lv3, 1300/400)

 **Turn 5: Yuki's Turn, Yuki 1750, Crow 5000**

"First, I flip summon Shadoll Falco, which lets me bring back Shadoll Beast in facedown defense mode." I repeated my earlier move. "Next, I play the spell card Upstart Goblin, I draw a card, and you gain 1000LP."

"Again?" Crow snickered, "you've given me 2000LP already, whose side are you on?"

I pointedly ignored his comments, everything was going according to plan. I only had 8 cards left in my deck. And with 7 cards in my hand, it should be more than enough.

"Next, I play a second copy of Hand destruction, we both discard 2 cards and draw two cards from the deck." I discarded another piece of Exodia, making a total of 3 in my graveyard. I'll get it back, I just can't have it taking up precious hand-space right now.

"I summon Shadoll Dragon (lv4, 1900/0) to the field, and tune him with my lv2 Shadoll Falco to special summon, Celestial Wolf Lord, Blue Sirius (lv6, 2400/1500)."

"I'll put two cards facedown and that's all for my turn," I announced, ending the turn with four cards.

 **Turn 6: Crow's Turn, Yuki 1750, Crow 6000**

"Alright! Let's see what I can do this turn,"Crow grinned. He had 4 monsters on the field, 3 cards in hand, and two cards in his back row, With that combo, he could pretty much synchro summon whatever monster he wanted.

"First of all, thanks to your spell card, I got Blackwing Oroshi the Squal (lv1, tuner, 400/600) l in my hand, and when I already have a Blackwing on the field, I can bring him out directly. Next, I tune him with my lv4 Kalut the Moon Shadow to synchro summon, Blackwing Gram the Shining (lv5, 2200/1500). This Champion of the birds adds one Blackwing monster to my hand when he's summoned, this time, I'll pick Blackwing Breeze the Zephyr (lv3, tuner, 1100/300), when he's added to my hand, I can special summon him directly onto the field. Now, I tune my level 3 Breeze the Zephyr with my level 5 Gram the Shining to special summon Lv 8 Blackwing Silverwind the Ascendant (lv8, 2800/2000)."

Why is he summoning high level monsters when I have Messenger of Peace of the field? I had a bad feeling about this.

"Next, my two Gale the Whirlwind will cut your Wolf down to pieces using their special abilities, decreasing his attack to a measly 600." Crow continued. "And before I finish, I'll just activate my trap card, Icarus Attack. This card tributes Gale the Whirlwind, but his sacrifice wouldn't be in vain because now I can destroy two cards on the field, and I think I'll choose your Messenger of Peace and a facedown card." He pointed to the first facedown card I put down, I smiled at the good luck.

"I activate my trap, Sinister Shadoll Games. This trap allows me to discard one Shadoll Monster to the graveyard, and flip one face up. I'll discard my final copy of Shadoll Squamata, and use his effect to discard Shadoll Hound to the graveyard also. When Shadoll Hound is discarded, I can switch the battle position of one monster on the field, and I'll change your Silverwind the Ascendant to defense mode. Next, my Shadoll Beast is flipped face-up, letting me draw two cards and discard one from my hand, and I discard Shadoll Hedgehog (lv3, 800/200) from my hand, and his ability lets me add another Shadoll monster to my hand, I'll take Shadoll Falco."

"Seeing as you just got more monsters on the field, it seems only fair that I do too," Crow pretended to look at the 2 cards in his hand. I summon Blackwing Demascus the Polar Night (lv3, 1300/700) and thanks to my Blackwing Whirlwind, I can add to my hand, and special summon Breeze the Zephr to my hand, so I can synchro summon a second copy of Blackwing Armed Wing (lv6, 2300/1000)."

"Now, Blackwing Armed Wing, destroy his Shadoll Beast."

"Not so fast!" I flipped over one of the trap cards I just laid down, "Threatening Roar, this trap forbids you from attacking this turn."

"Big deal," Crow shrugged, "should have destroyed your monsters with my Silverwind of Ascendant's effect if I had known though."

"It wouldn't have made a difference," I assured him. "You would have lost all the same.

"What are you talking about?" Crow asked confused. "Do I need to remind you that my life points is more than 4000 points higher than yours?"

I only smiled and made no reply.

"Fine, whatever, I'll put one card face down and end my turn." Crow grumbled.

 **Turn 6: Crow's Turn, Yuki 1750, Crow 6000**

I drew again, I only had 2 cards in my deck now and 5 in my hand.

"First, I play Black Hole," I needed this to draw out any counters he might have. "This card destroys all monsters on the field."

"I activate my Trap Card, Shadow Impulse. When a synchro monster of mine is destroyed on your turn, I can special summon a different synchro monster from my deck that has the same level. Black-Winged Dragon, Black Feather (lv8, 2800/2600), come on out!" Crow didn't look fazed at all by my move. He should be, that was his last facedown card.

"When Shadoll Beast is destroyed by a card effect, I get to draw one card from my deck." I smiled at having draw the 4th piece of Exodia Of course, I was bound to. There were only 2 cards left in my deck, both of which were Exodia pieces."Next, I summon Mathematician (1500/500), when he's summoned, I can discard one monster from my deck to my graveyard."

I drew the last card from my deck and placed it in the grave.

"Your deck is empty?" Crow exclaimed, "You don't honestly think you'll beat me on this turn!"

"But that's exactly what I'll do," I corrected him with a smirk. "in case you didn't notice, the card I discarded was Exodia, the Forbidden One (lv3, 1000/1000)."

Crow's eyes widened as he understood me, "but it's in the graveyard!"

"Four out of the five are," I admitted, "which is why I activate my trap, Backup Soldier! This card lets me retrieve upto 3 normal monster from my graveyard, so I can bring back Left Arm of the Forbidden One, Right Arm of the Forbidden One, and Right Leg of the Forbidden One. Next, I activate the spell Dark Eruption, so I can bring back Exodia, the Forbidden One into my hand also."

"But!" Crow sputtered, I can related, it sucks having been beaten by an Exodia deck.

"Exodia, obliterate!" I said jokingly, remembering back to season 1 with a whiff of nostalgia. Is that in this world or the last one?

I actually saw a black-holesque portal opening on the duel arena, and a giant Egyptian-looking humanoid monster emerge. It waved its arms, and a blast of light shot towards Crow's dragon. And that's when everything turned dark.

* * *

 **A/N 1:** I'm not familiar enough with the other series to comment, but in the first series (I guess technically the second), every time somebody with magic dueled somebody without, the person with magic won.

 **A/N 2:** It's ridiculously hard putting any Exodia Deck against a Blackwing deck. I obviously can't use Blue-Eyes Exodia because I don't have any Blue Eyes. And I'm not going to mention burn cards (except the 400LP/speed counter if I write turbo duels), because their effects are grossly exaggerated with 4000LP. I do think Shadolls adds consistency to a Exodia deck. It was really hard making a Exodia deck win...


	16. Btw, You're Here to Save the World

**A/N 0:** Sorry about the last chapter, it's been reworked extensively because as RinoKuro correctly pointed out, Yusei doesn't have his Stardust Dragon yet, and I wanted a duel between Exodia and a Signer Dragon, I wanted a Signer monster to bring out the Crimson Dragon, so a duel between Crow and Yuki was added to the last chapter and Yuki won with Exodia.

 **A/N 1:** Now that I have written this chapter, I can finally put the full story summary up, yay! (FF wouldn't accept the double exclamation marks I tried to use to denote my excitement) It's in chapter 1. It does contain a bit of a spoiler for this chapter, so feel free to read that first or not, your choice.

 **A/N 2:** This chapter mentions Arc-V in one of Yuki's rants. Basically, Arc-V contains four dimensions, the Main Dimension with the protagonist, the Fusion Dimension (similar to the GX-verse), the Synchro Dimension (similar to the 5Ds-verse) and the XYZ dimension (similar to Zexal-verse). (Yes, I do think that the YGO franchise is running out of ideas.) That's as much Arc-V as will be touched on in this story.

 **A/N 3:** Crimson Dragon's speech is in _italics_

* * *

"Exodia, obliterate!" I commanded with full force.

And suddenly, everything grew dark. Or rather, I realized as as light began to slowly reach me again, time stopped.

Well, time can't actually stop. If it did, my thoughts, which relies on the transmission of charges, would no longer persist, thus I wouldn't be able to recognize that time had stopped. Light wouldn't be able to travel, so I'd be blind, but of course, I wouldn't realize that because I would be incapable of thought.

But time did slow all around me. I saw Crow, frozen in mid-sentence. The constant whirring of the machines just outside had completely stopped, since sound had not yet reached me in this twisted pocket of time. The holographic battle was progressing at an imperceptible rate, I can see individual rays of light changing to form the each aspect of the battling monsters and special effects. The duel and everything else around me appeared distorted, as light speed up as it approached me.

The only thing that remained unaffected by this change in time is a ruby-colored dragon, composed entirely of light, that had suddenly materialized before me.

Not shining light like the sun, or holographic like the 3-D rendered duel monsters, but rather like looking at a beam of light from a flashlight from the side. I can see its existence, I recognize it as light rather than a physical form, but it in no way radiates in my direction. It's like the light particles doesn't travel past the confines of its body, which obviously doesn't make sense because in that case, I'd only see a vacuum where it stood, but…

Oh screw it, I don't get it. I never liked the particle wave theory of light, you're either one thing or the other, make up your mind! And this whole space-time continuum thing is way beyond my understanding.

I studied the beast carefully but remained silent, not wanting to risk upsetting a magical creature with unknown powers.

" _I had not anticipated meeting you, my young visitor, this early,"_ I was certain that the Crimson Dragon didn't speak, but I heard its message nonetheless, it wasn't exactly a voice, so much as thoughts implanted directly into my brain, " _One of my Dragons called to me in its defeat, allowing me this fortunate encounter. Not many beings in this world can disrupt my designs, you might be the right choice after all."_

"Choice?" I immediately caught on to the key word in that confusing series of sentences, forgetting entirely about the card game, "whose choice? Choice for what?" I'm usually more patient, but the monster in front of me is hinting at the source of my very existence in the world.

" _Mine I'm afraid,"_ The beast 'said', it doubtless observed the anger and resentment radiating off of me and continued, _"your body was damaged beyond mortal repair in your world, so I brought you here, in hopes that your powers would change the Fate of this universe."_

…There were so many things wrong with that sentence I didn't know where to start.

"What do you want to change?" I asked finally, the 5D's series ended pretty well as far as I remember.

The beast paused, if it had features, I suspect I would have read hesitation off its face.

" _Though I would have emerged victorious from the next Battle without your presence, I always witness, despite my best efforts, troubling futures for this dimension."_

Thoughts raced through my head. 'Always', 'witness', and 'futures' aren't usually words you string together in the same sentence. Given the Crimson Dragon's presumed power to travel through time, it may be reasonable to assume it actually did see these futures, plural.

" _Every time the fate of the universe hangs in the balance, the King of the Netherworld, who battles for the Darkness, fights me through mortals controlling duel monsters."_

The ultimate forces of light and dark decides the fate of the world with a trading card game, got it.

" _Though I have thus far emerged victorious, all duel are axiomatically unpredictable. After such a duel that may decide the fate of this Dimension, the victor claims this dimension, while an alternate sub-dimension comes into existence where the same duel is lost, dooming that world to an eternal darkness."_

"Huh?" Academically, I sort of understood the information. Realistically, it flew so high over my head we're not even in the same galaxy anymore. "So every time there's an ultimate (Yuki thought the phrase 'season finale' might be a little insulting) duel, two dimensions come out of it, one where you won, and another where you lost?"

" _The alternate dimension is but a fragment of our own, I call them the Shadow Dimensions. In the past, these dimensions soon dissipated and I paid them no mind. Until I foresaw that several of these dimensions would collide with our dimension in the near future. If this is not prevented, the collision would result in a merger of the dimensions, leading to alterations of the fundamental laws of the universe, in the process converting all matter back into energy. Sadly, it is Fate itself that binds our dimension onto this course."_

Okay, destruction of all matter is definitely not good. But why do I feel like this sounds familiar? Something stirred at the back of my mind.

"What do you want me for?" I asked suspiciously. What could a time-traveling magical creature want with a mortal like me?

" _We are of this universe, thus bound by its course. You, however, are free. Thus it is within your power and yours alone of prevent the formation of these dimensions. To alter the upcoming fights between good and evil, ensure an overwhelming victory for the Light so these Shadow Dimensions never come into existence. You do not have much time-"_

Half way through the dragon's speech, everything clicked.

"You're talking about Yusei's duels with Goodwin, and Z-One," I said with certainty. Good versus evil, happening soon, changes the fate of the world, it's a reasonable conjecture.

The Crimson Dragon nodded.

"And Paradox," I continued, feeling more confident at my reasoning though incredulous at my own conclusions, "If Goodwin wins, as he does in this Shadow Dimension of yours, he freezes the population as is, and that leads to the Synchro Dimension, that's why there's no Yusei, because he's the only variable in that world so Goodwin wiped him out."

I didn't need for the Dragon to respond, the brighter spots of light that presumably represented its eyes grew larger and its entire form shrunk back in shock.

"If Z-One wins, he destroys Synchro summoning, until aliens invade and XYZ summoning becomes prevalent, creating the XYZ dimension without Synchros. If Paradox wins, Jaden is defeated and is unable to prevent evil forces from taking over Duel Academy."

" _In all alternate dimensions I have witnessed,"_ The dragon corrected, _"the Spirit inhabiting Yugi Motou is able to prevent Paradox from destroying duel monsters by sacrificing himself. This prevents Yugi's destined meeting with Jaden, and the latter never enters the duel academy."_ It was an implicit confirmation of my earlier assertions.

"Which leads to the Fusion Dimension where the Duel Academy turns evil!" I concluded victoriously until I heard what I said, "Wait, so you want me to prevent Arc-V? Isn't that a little harsh? I mean I know the YuGiOh franchise's been going downhill, but don't you think you're being a little extreme?"

" _This world has long spun of the controls of our Creators,"_ the dragon actually sounded regretful for some reason, I'd be happy to not be controlled by balding business executives trying to profit off of minors (and adults playing a children's card game), _"despite my best efforts, I cannot recreate the series of serendipities as our makers designed, if these Shadow dimensions were to come into existence, they_ will collide _with ours, then our combined destruction is unavoidable."_

So unless I somehow prevent these Shadow Dimensions from forming, they would eventually collide with this Dimension and destroy literally everything. No pressure.

"When does this happen?" I asked curiously. I mean if it were to happen in like a couple of thousands of years, well, I really don't care.

" _Time passes differently in the moving of dimensional planes, it is futile to measure its occurrence using passage of time within this Dimension . Its exacting timing has varied from years to centuries after the recent battles."_ I shuddered at its choice of tense and what it implied.

"I still don't understand what you want me for," I said cautiously. Collision of dimensions, destruction of the world, these things are magnitudes beyond my comprehension let alone control.

" _You are from a higher plane,"_ the red light trained on me, _"same as those of our Creators. You are the variable, you possess the power of altering the Destiny and even some fundamental laws of this universe."_ the dragon elaborated.

I sort of get it, I think. Because I'm from a reality where the YuGiOh universe is created, I'm not as limited by the Fate of this universe. It's like when you travel to another country, you wouldn't get included in the census, the Fate (whatever that is) of this universe doesn't affect me as it does the others, so I have a much better chance of changing it.

"You still didn't answer my question," I said skeptically.

" _You must ensure an absolute victory for the Light at each step_ ," the Crimson Dragon replied, _"One not depended on chance."_ I stared, it can't possibly mean… _"The results of a duel is, by its very nature, unpredictable, and thus cannot be used to defeat the powers of Darkness if we want to prevent the formation of these Shadow Dimensions and the complete destruction of future."_

I felt a surge of laughter bubbling up despite the weight of its words. Here's a magical monster, whose initial creation originated from a virtual-reality video game, in a filler plotline, in a cartoon revolving around using a children's card game to save the world, telling me that the same card games is no longer reliable for saving the world.

"How? How do I weaken a mythical beast of untold energy?" Who does it think I am, Yami Yugi?

" _The Netherworld Ruler is weakened by each defeat of the Immortals in its control, though I fear that would no longer sufficiently diminish its powers. Battling the monster with Exodia, though, should significantly drain its powers, as it did me."_

"You expect me to defeat each Dark Signer with an Exodia deck?" Frankly, that's just asking for too much, "There must be some other way..."

 _That, my young visitor, is up to you to discover._

"So do I get any help at all, like can you make me a Signer or something?" Even old RPGs give you a rusty sword when you start off.

" _I'm afraid I can offer you little assistance during this journey. I have been greatly weakened in bringing you here, and the battle with Exodia had drained me further, I am incapable of offering you any help during your duels."_

"Is that how Crow won?" I sounded a little more accusingly than I intended, but 21 straight losses in a row would piss anyone off.

" _His Blackwing Dragon did borrow much energy from me to ensure the many victories of his master against you. I had not expected one of my dragons battling Exodia, I'm afraid I would not be able to offer such help again."_

"Wait, again as in to _any_ Signer again?" it suddenly came to me, "And the Dark Signers, they still get magical help from the King of the Netherworld?"

The Dragon nodded, having the good graces to look embarrassed, at least I think it's embarrassment, it's hard reading a dragon make out of light _._

"Any more bad news I should know about?" I asked sarcastically.

" _I'm sorry to burden you with such arduous tasks,"_ The Dragon said, _"but please, for the sake of this dimension, for the people you met in it, save its future from certain doom."_

"I'll… see what I can do" I agreed as the giant beast faded and time resumed around me.

I have no idea what the hell I'm going to do, or how the hell I was supposed to destroy a magical evil beast powerful enough to destroy the world, and a technological genius from the distant future, without forcing them to accept defeat through a children's card game.

Technically, I tried to think positive, I did achieve my goal of freeing myself from the Crimson Dragon's influence on my duels, only it happened in the worst way possible. It would be really funny, in a bad way, if this ended up being the beginning of the end of the world, I thought absentmindedly.

* * *

In Domino City, a green (blue?) haired girl looked at her arm in surprise, something felt wrong, something felt missing, but she can't tell what it was. She was quickly distracted by her brother's complaints.

Also in Domino City, deep in the headquarters of the infamous Arcadia, a young woman touched her arm thoughtfully. Her arm remained flawless, but it felt like a piece was just ripped out.

Roman Goodwin started as he felt the spider mark on his arm burn like it never did before and a rush of negative energy washed over him, bringing him to his knees in a fit of pain and despair.

Deep in the abyss of darkness, a formless monster roared as it felt its strengths grow and the barriers to the human realm weaken.

* * *

 **A/N 0:** Ahahahahah, this is what I've been trying to get to. Saving the world etc _without_ resorting to card games. There'll still be plenty of duels though.

And did anybody else notice the original design for the Crimson Dragon was from Kaiba's virtual reality video game? The design on Goodwin's shirt is basically the same as the design on the ground when Joey used his Time Wizard to summon the monster.

Btw, no, I'm not going to use an Exodia deck for the rest of the story, if for no reason other than the fact that I like variety.

 **A/N 1:** Feel free to ignore the following A/Ns if you don't like the technicalities of this chapter and/or you understood everything in it.

I'm subscribing to (a wildly twisted version of) the parallel universe theory, which generally states that when something can go one way or another, a dimension is split into two, and both possibilities are explored. In this case, Yusei's loss in each scenario leads to a different Shadow Dimension. The Crimson Dragon sees that in the future, these Shadow Dimensions would collide with the main dimension, allowing them to merge back into one, in the process destroying all matter and 'resetting' the universe. It's just a hiccup for the universe, but really, really bad for anything that exists.

The split and re-fusion is the Fate of this universe, so the Crimson Dragon is powerless to stop it. So it summoned Yuki from a higher plane. Originating from the world where YGO is formed, Yuki is in the same plane of existence as the Creators of YGO (aka reality), thus possesses the ability to reject and rewrite the destiny of the entire YGO world. So by securing a definitive victory for the Light, she can prevent the formation of the Shadow Dimensions. Duels involve too many uncertainties, so these victories cannot be achieved through dueling.

I feel like everything's pretty clear cut, it used to be a lot more convoluted.

 **A/N 2:** This is just a good-humored jab at Arc-V. This is an YGO fanfic anyways, so I borrowed (coughstolecough) the idea of sub-dimensions from Arc-V, and their doom is a 'sub-dimensions gone wrong' situation. I don't actually think that'll be the canon explanation for the different dimensions in the Arc-V series. I do think 'alternate reality where main character failed' may end up being the explanation Konami uses for the three alternate dimensions.

If Jaden fails, Duel Academy turns evil, hence the Fusion Dimension. If Yusei fails, Goodwin wins and creates his own idealized world, hence the Synchro Dimension. If Yuma fails, aliens take over earth, removes all traces of Synchro (since it's generated by the strength of humans) hence the XYZ dimension.

And of course, Yugi doesn't fail because he's the King of Games.


	17. Fairytales and Aftermaths

**Disclaimer** : I do not own YGO 5ds.

* * *

For a brief second, clouds gathered over the edge of Satellite, as though signaling an impending storm. To the careful observers, they can also see a giant red form made of light, roughly in the shape of a dragon, hidden amongst the clouds. Those more familiar with the Satellite would recognize the center of this magical energy as a house formerly occupied by the Magicians, now the property of one Yuki Tono, and the site for a flourishing new plant in the area.

…

"So that's it?" Crow sounded utterly unimpressed and remained completely oblivious of the Crimson Dragon's appearance or the earth-shattering information I had just acquired. All he saw was the blinding light of Exodia's attack and the destruction of his Blackwinged Dragon, as well as my obvious change in countenance after that attack. "You stayed up all night and built an Exodia deck so you could beat me 1:21?"

"It's a little more complicated," I protested automatically. My mind already fully preoccupied by what I just learned. Crow was being a little snarky, but that was understandable considering I did just force him into 22 duels through blackmail and kidnapping.

"Well?" Crow demanded, "Do you want to duel again or can I go to bed now?" By our third duel last night, Crow claimed that he gotten to know me well enough, through dueling apparently, to realize I wasn't actually going to do anything to the kids. This idea was reinforced when he actually saw those kids this morning before his nap (the same nap that I interrupted), and found them in much better shape than they had ever been. Naturally they would be. You can't have a 16 year-old like Crow taking care of a bunch of 10-year-olds and expect positive results.

"Right." I scratched my head, remembering the second ex-Enforcer in the building, "Umm, Yusei's here for you...

I briefly pondered the possibility of telling Yusei the truth, or at least some of the truth, and gaining the help of the protagonist... But how do you start that conversation exactly? 'Hi, a giant magical dragon spoke to me while time was frozen for the rest of the world, this world will be destroyed unless I save it'. Yusei probably already thinks I'm crazy. And if he doesn't, well, could I trust anybody who actually believed that?

"He was worried," I finished instead.

"Yusei!" Crow grinned, "I should have known he'd be here by now. Did he give you a hard time?"

"Not quite," I smiled, trying to feel a little better about myself. Yes, there is possibly a looming destruction of the world, but to have my life controlled like a puppet, I might as well be dead. "You should probably find him and talk him down a little though." And preferably get rid of him before the third ex-Enforcer wakes up, at this rate, we'll give Kalin brain damage.

"Sure, I'll talk to him," Crow agreed, "then I'm gonna get out of here. It's been fun beating you and all, but I have to get back to business."

"What is your business?" I asked curiously. Crow apparently doesn't have any territory, and he's not exactly the 9 to 5 type. Being one of the Enforcers and under close scrutiny by Domino City, there doesn't seem to be much he could do.

"I take what I can from the Sector," Crow sounded positively smug over his criminal activities, "other than that, I get whatever else I can, whenever I can for those kids." That hit me a little harder.

I was about to offer for Crow to stay here before I remembered that I had already extended the same offer to Kalin, I probably shouldn't get the two to meet at this point, not if I want to stay undetected in the Satellite.

Not having stepped outside, Yuki remained as oblivious as Crow about the scene Crimson Dragon made during its appearance, her hope for anonymity was just crushed by a magical lizard.

* * *

"Take this," Greiger put the 6-year-old boy who had managed to crawl on top of him into Cyril's arms, the whitehead stood shakily under the new weight that clung onto him. Satisfied that neither kid would be able to follow him, Greiger nodded to Cyril, "I will return shortly," he said before making his way out of the house. Rex Goodwin would certainly want to know the details of the most recent development.

Greiger remembered back to his siblings and the rest of his village, just barely surviving despite his best efforts, unlike many similar villages that simply disappeared with the passing of time, their occupants either had a chance to leave or didn't. Spying went against everything Greiger believed in, but the welfare of his family and friends laid on the line. And surely reporting on a woman who kidnapped children, to the proper authorities no less, it was the right thing to do. Thus reaffirmed in his beliefs, the brunet proceeded to send the details of the recent events to the Director of Domino City.

...

"The Crimson Dragon!" Roman Goodwin struggled out of the old Reactor site with some difficulty and stared at the giant beast in awe and fear. Not fear for his own life, he was past that the day he chopped off his own arm, but Roman was terrified of what the premature appearance of the Crimson Dragon meant for the rest of humanity. Standing at barely 20kms away, he can't even detect the power emanating from this supposedly almighty beast. Instead, the burning of his arm has radiated to a pain that seared through his very soul, pulsating impatiently as the Demon from the Netherworld grew more eager as the Crimson Dragon's powers waned.

One month, Roman thought, maybe less before this evil resurfaces. If the Signers are not ready by then, all shall be lost. Perhaps if Rex could find the source of this drain on the Dragon's powers, destruction might be delayed, or at least our impending doom would not be accelerated again.

...

"The Crimson Dragon." Rex Goodwin mused as he watched the storm clouds gather over the Satellite. "Has Yusei visualized his mark already or was this the Black Rose?" He spoke aloud, safe in the privacy of his own office.

It wasn't supposed to have happened this soon, and Jack isn't nearly ready. Rex wasn't even entirely sure of the exact identities of the Signers yet. The date to the Fortune Cup must be readjusted. If the promotions were to start immediately, the event could be arranged within the month without looking too hurried. First and foremost, he must discover the cause of this unexpected appearance and how he might use it to his advantage.

* * *

"How is…?" I asked Chaos furtively, looking around to make sure Crow was out of sight, tilting my head towards the upstairs room where Kalin is, hopefully, still sleeping (unconscious) in my bed.

"He's fine," Chaos assured me, understanding my need to not mention Kalin's name in case the other two overhears. "Greiger left though, didn't say where he's going either."

I nodded, a little confused. My duel with Crow wasn't exactly discrete, but at the same time, Greiger is very unlikely to have heard of it, what could he possibly have to report to Goodwin? Most likely the arrival of Yusei Fudo, I decided, I have to get rid of that kid quickly. "This is not a priority for him," I replied, "We'll just have to keep that in mind if he comes back."

"He has been great with the kids," Chaos agreed, "Felice and even Teddy have become so busy with sales now they can't possibly go back to babysitting."

"Sales?" I asked, I hadn't been keeping up with the business side of things, what's with 'political and magical forces destroying our lives' and all, but last I check, we had enough supplies left to last more than a month. I say supplies because the Satellite had largely regressed back into a barter system, it physically hurts me to think about the economy here.

"Lazar had cracked down on Sector Security buying our products," Chaos informed me, somehow knowing more than me despite only having gotten back last night, "and there aren't many people from Domino who can regularly come to the Satellite."

"We can't do anything about our distribution channels yet," I said thoughtfully, it couldn't hurt to lay low for a while after Yusei's visit. We have time anyways, there's still 6 months till the Fortune Cup, I naively thought. "But that doesn't mean we can't attract more people to come here."

"How?" Chaos asked skeptically, "it's a crime for Domino residents to come without a valid reason affirmed by the City."

"I'll figure something out," I smirked. I had the perfect idea, if I could just talk to Yusei and monopolize duel runners he creates, I would advertise them before the Fortune Cup and make a killing after.

Chaos nodded but didn't ask. I waited and waited, wanting to reveal my ingenious (and surprisingly not stolen) idea and have him marvel at my brilliance, but he said nothing. It took me a couple of days to figure out that he had gotten into a really weird habit of not doing anything beyond what he thought was his job description, supposedly to enhance my authority over the group. I didn't know I had authority over the group, or authority in general.

"I'm going to go find Nervin," I grumbled finally, realizing our staring contest was getting a little strange. Chaos followed me as I turned to leaved, I understood why when I looked up and saw Crow walking over alone.

"Hey Yuki," Crow greeted me with a large grin usually reserved for somebody who never hired a thug (aka Greiger) to toss you into a bag. He wants something, I realized immediately. I was more relieved with the idea than anything else, I would be happy to pay to offset the animosity I currently have with the protagonists, they would carry a lot of influence and power very soon, not to mention I was still drooling over Yusei's technological prowess.

"Hey," so I smiled back, though how to explain away multiple kidnappings is a little more difficult, "Where's Yusei?"

"Oh he had some other stuff to take care of, but I'm right here! I'd be happy to help you with your friend," Crow offered'. Tono had asked for his help in rescuing somebody from the Facilities, he wasn 't get Yusei caught up in that. Yusei belongs in a better place, he deserved it.

"He," Right, Chaos, the reason I grabbed Crow in the first place. See, this whole mess could have been avoided if Kalin had just communicated with me in a timely manner, or if we had some sort of high-tech long-distance communication device. I couldn't exactly tell Crow that Chaos was rescued by a Dark Signer, your mortal enemy who also used to be your friend, "he escaped before they could get him to Domino City," I said instead, it sounded suspicious even to my own ears, "This is him right here." I pointed to Chaos, hoping to add credibility to my true (ish) story.

Still standing behind me, Chaos hmphed as acknowledgement of Crow's existence.. I missed the flicker of recognition that flashed through their eyes.

"That's, I mean that's good to hear," Crow stuttered, his original speech disrupted by the most recent turn of events.

I waited. I would have apologized, but if there was something these two wanted, it might give me an upper hand to have him say it first.

"What would it take to keep those kids here?" Crow finally blurted out.

'Keep them kidnapped?' I almost asked before I stopped myself.

"This isn't a kindergarten," I said instead. And I don't want to be held responsible for a bunch of kids. I mean technically I'm already responsible for a herd of minors, but also technically, they're workers here (and I'll probably be going to a special place in hell for it), thus nobody would hold me accountable.

"What are you willing to do for these kids?" Chaos interrupted.

"Anything." Crow replied with a cocky smile, his words both a promise and a thinly veiled threat. "Trust me, you don't want me on the other side."

The orange hairball had a point, Crow could wreck a lot of havoc if he wanted to, certainly more nuisance than a couple of kids would cause. And it's not like I can hurt him. I was deep in thought, and thus missed the mildly disapproving glance Chaos sent Crow, Crow retaliated by by sticking his tongue out.

"For your services then," I relented. I'll just have to keep him and Kalin from ever meeting, what could possibly go wrong. "As long as you stay, they stay."

"Done," Crow agreed, "and if I have to leave, they'd better be here when I come back."

"Where are you going to go?" Chaos asked with an uncharacteristic sarcasm, "Still hang up on leaving the Satellite like the Legendary Rider? You never did grow out of that story."

"Even if he was caught by the Sector, he still brought hope into the Satellite." Crow defended his hero automatically.

"Come _ON_!" I snickered, exasperated, "The guy rides motorcycle off a half-built bridge to avoid the cops, was never seen again, what do you think happened?" I mean, I know it was Rex Goodwin, but that story was a least a little far-fetched.

"But-" Crow protested, "they never found the body, and nobody saw him again, remember?"

"No, they _claimed_ to never find the body, so the Satellite has one more fictional character through whom they could live vicariously." I rolled my eyes, even for an anime designed to promote a children's card game, this was incredibly politically ignorant.

"But he started building the Daedulus Bridge!" Crow countered, "That's our hope for escape to a better life!"

"Only if you believe in BS," I responded lightly, earning a (well-deserved) resentful glare. I had serious plans for Crow if he were going to stay, so I was going to disillusion him quickly. "The physical water was never what separated Old Domino City from the new. There're countless people who could cross through the tunnels, by boat, heck even swimming across, but anybody from the Satellite caught in Neo Domino City is thrown into jail for a year or two and tossed right back. How do you think having a bridge is going to be any different?"

"But, they can't stop us from crossing the bridge if it's there!" Said the orange hairball again.

"Why not? Because it would be mean?" I answered sarcastically, "All they need is a handful of guards at the end, and worst case scenario, blow the bridge up again. You have to understand, it's the Neo Domino City that is keeping us in the slums, not the physical isolation of the Satellite."

"So what do you propose we do?" Crow asked, "Duel sector security to overthrow the government?"

"What?" I managed to get out between the bouts of uncontrollable laughter, what was it with people here and plotting drastic political upheaval around a children's card game? It took a good thirty seconds before I could speak in full sentences again. "What in the world are you talking about? Duel to-" I burst out laughing again.

"What's so funny!" Crow demanded angrily. Even Chaos seems to have taken his side on this.

"You can't take over a government by dueling, guys" I struggled to explain. It was like trying to describe the color purple or why one plus one equals two, rudimentary concepts that I have taken for granted for as long as I could remember. "You just can't! Beating everybody in a card game so that they wouldn't play with you anymore isn't part of running a government." You can't even take over a playground with that.

"Then how do you take over a government?" Chaos asked for Crow, he seemed much more serious about this topic.

"I don't know," I replied honestly, thinking of the few successes and many tragedies civilian uprisings have caused, "which is why that's not what I'm trying to do. I just want increase living standards here a little, for everyone else, but also for myself, and we'll see where we get from there."

Crow lowered is head, the orange ball of hair had fallen despondent at the realization that the quest of his Hero was doomed from the star.

"Let me show you around, and we can focus on the matter at hand" I rolled my eyes, changing the subject I grabbed Crow's arm because I can't reach his shoulders, deftly guiding him away from the upstairs bedrooms, "Greiger just took an unexplained leave of absence so you'll have to take care of the kids for now. And also you'll have to learn the entire curriculum so you can teach them, preferable within the day or two."

* * *

Rex Goodwin fingered the piece of paper that contained Greiger's message, it barely reached him before sundown (due to the woeful absence of many modern conveniences despite clearly available technology). He had apparently underestimated the importance of this new girl. She does not have any magical powers that he was aware of, yet Yusei's duel with her had brought out the Crimson Dragon. Not having the full details of the situation, Goodwin naturally assumed that Yusei, the known Signer, had been the one responsible for summoning the magical beast of light.

Yusei had progressed far faster than he anticipated, and though Jack's improvements has been considerable since leaving the Satellite, he was nowhere near ready. Goodwin had sent Lazar to entice Jack with ideas to antagonizing Yusei further, just in case Yusei had forgotten about his Stardust Dragon and relented to his survival in the Satellite. So if all goes according to plan, Yusei should make his way to Domino within the week. Rex Goodwin had counted on both duelists being on par in both skill and power when that happens, so the clash of their Signer Dragons could bring out the Crimson Dragon right here in Domino City, offering Goodwin a chance to study the Crimson Dragon as well as the effect it has on its Signers.

Of course, it's not difficult to correct this imbalance in power. If that satellite runt could bring out the Crimson Dragon in a duel with Yusei, surely she could do the same in a duel with Jack Atlas. It would be a matter of course to get her here.

Goodwin looked out the window in his office and smiled, he smiled again at the sinister expression it reflected back.

* * *

Shaking myself like a dog after sleeping the whole night on a wooden plank again, I stumbled up the stairs to the shower.

"Morning," Chaos greeted me as he came out of my room, that's right, my room.

Both Chaos and Kalin slept in my bed last night.

I just wasn't in it.

Chaos and Kalin were physically vulnerable enough that it wasn't a good idea to move them very far, and my room was the most comfortable room in the house, so I spent the night on the table/piece of wood (there is no couch.)

"Kessler's going to wake up at around 9," Chaos said with a disconcerting amount of certainty. He had fed Kalin something yesterday while the latter was still barely awake, that presumably, caused Kalin to sleep till this morning. "You should probably make something up right about now."

"I'll deal with Crow first," I put Kalin off for as long as I could, it wasn't a conversation I was looking forward to.

"I'll take Hogan," Chaos didn't even give me that chance, "there're too many kids to teach them here. I'll secure perimeters around a building close-by that we could use as a school. We'll need some more security if this is going to last though."

Security, right. We can't afford security right now, but it's definitely on the agenda.

"I'll go get something to eat then," I said carefully, choosing water and battery acid over Kalin Kessler for the time being. It's a little more complicated than having knocked him out. I had ensured Kalin's assistance so he could duel against the Signers, whom I thought I couldn't win against without supernatural assistance. Now that the Crimson Dragon is weakened, I'm sorely reminded that Kalin isn't good for much else, and keeping him here risks angering Roman Goodwin, the guy with the power to magically brainwash people. I turned back downstairs deep in thought, forgetting completely about my shower.

* * *

"Ugh, Kalin," I groaned out loud, messaging my temples which were beginning to hurt at the mere thought. How do I explain away knocking him out the second time, and this time right after he saved Chaos.

"Kessler?" Felice asked.

"Yeah," I admitted, "Chaos knocked him out yesterday when Yusei showed up, so we wouldn't have the death-duel of the year here, but now I get to deal with the mess."

"He's fine now." Felice grinned, "I talked some sense into him." I was truly impressed, talking sense into a brainwashed antagonist, that's quite a feat. I didn't give her enough credit.

"All he needs to understand," Felice elaborated for my benefit, "is that nothing has changed. Everything that made him want to join us, is still valid right now, so what happened is really no reason for him to change his mind."

Distorted logic, I decided, I like it. I'll stuff whatever logic I can get into Kalin's head and call it a win.

"He's still recovering from whatever Chaos did to him, you'll find him in your room." Felice told me.

"Thanks," I patted her on the shoulder and ran off, a little more comfortable with facing the undoubtedly still-pissed Dark Signer.

* * *

Kalin looked surprisingly peaceful as he leaned against the headboard of my bed, reading. Hearing me come in, he glanced upwards and greeted me with a half-smile, looking at me with a pair of golden eyes dotted with specks of the purest black. I was reminded of a large cat, curled up in the corner of a cave, licking its own wounds, slowly perking up its furry ears at my approach and greeting me with a low purr. That's it, I don't care what he's good for, I'm definitely keeping him.

"Good morning," I smiled back and waited for him to bite my head off.

"Well?" Kalin raised an eyebrow, a playful smirk on his lips.

"Kalin," I laughed quietly, taking a seat on the bed beside him, "You could've found Yusei and challenged him at any time, but for whatever reason, you didn't. So I'm going to guess I didn't ruin your dark plans."

"My dark plans remain undisturbed," Kalin agreed with a smile, "the same can't be said for my head."

"If you can get to Domino legally, you should probably get it checked out," I told him sincerely, there were no medical equipment in the Satellite, but he should at least get a CT or something.

Kalin chuckled, obviously not taking my advice seriously.

"Come down stairs," Seeing that he was mostly over our past acts of aggression, I stood up, "we're having a meeting at 10."

"Meeting?" Kalin repeated, feeling lost not for the first time in this house. "You're not worried that I'll steal all your secrets?" He asked curiously.

"If I were, I wouldn't have invited you," I rolled my eyes, "Now come, we have actual work to do." Work that doesn't involve card games or fate of the world.

…

The meeting went much as most other meetings I had been to, it was tedious, boring and I didn't understand half of what people were saying, and I ran it. It mostly involved me delegating stuff I was supposed to do to other people. Here's what I gathered roughly from the notes Nervin took.

According to Cyril, we were about to go bankrupt, so Nervin agreed to develop new mp3s for sale. I don't know why I insisted on the 3, it just felt right. While Crow taught (babysat) kids, Galen agreed to run the financial side of things, starting with building a school that didn't look like it was about to fall. Felice and Vincent were doing fine with sales, this time focusing on promotions to attract people to the Satellite. Chaos and Kalin would start, as soon as we can afford it, to start a security force. It was my secret plan for Kalin to control the psychic duelists if we managed to get any, but that's too early to say. Cyril had agreed, in addition to overseeing productions, to start hiring more people, a decision we would all soon regret dearly. Even Teddy was charged with information gathering.

The only two people left free were Greiger and I. Greiger because I reserved special, less-legal tasks for him. I, personally, was determined to clean up this place, literally, starting with personal hygiene. I had limits, they're now fairly low but I still had limits, and I was very close to them.I must really insist on regular showers, oral hygiene, and for god's sake, clean clothes! I know teenagers generally aren't too concerned about cleanliness, but surely even they had a bottom line. Yet these jerks insists that I needed to see the real Satellite to be converted to their point of view (they refused to consider hygiene an issue), despite my futile protestations.

And that's how I found myself wandering and 'sightseeing' in the Satellite, with Chaos (who managed to escape Crow's clingy claws), Kalin, Cyril and Vincent. With three duel runners between us, we soon crossed half the city and attracted somebody not quite unexpected, Sector Security.

"Yusei Tono!" I thought the whirring of helicopter overhead was a tad overkill as the guy yelled down at me through a loud speaker and his colleagues surrounded us on the ground, "you are wanted by the order of Neo Domino City. Come peacefully, I repeat, come peacefully. We at Sector Security tries to ensure the safety of all our citizens…"

"So _now_ we're citizens," Vincent grumbled.

Chaos took one looked at Kalin and immediately took off his own jacket, putting it over Kalin's head where it hang like an oversized trench coat. Good thinking, I smiled at him appreciatively while Kalin muttered about personal hygiene. See, now he gets it.

"Yuki Tono!" a Sector Security officer stood twenty feet away and shouted at me thought a loud speaker. To my relief, Kalin didn't seem to attract much attention. "Please come with us, the Director wants to see you."

"Are you sure?" I couldn't help speaking my mind, I thought I had remained pretty low-key since I got here. Even if I did antagonize Yusei for a while, I had done nothing serious enough to reach Goodwin's ears.

"It's probably the dragon," Chaos told me matter-of-factly.

The dragoon, I nodded, that makes sense, "wait, how did you guys know about the…?" I cut myself off, almost choking with the effort, not wanting to mention the name of the Crimson Dragon in front of Kalin. He did have other loyalties, even if he agreed to help out.

"Storm clouds and a giant dragon appeared on top of the house yesterday," Cyril informed me, "it was a little hard to miss."

Well, that explains Goodwin's invitation, he probably thinks I'm Signer or something. I gnawed on my lips, this might end poorly if he finds out that I'm not. But it's not like I had a choice, I sighed and made my way towards the Sector guards.

"Yuki, you can't go," Vincent blocked my way on the spur of the moment, "there's no way they would let you come back. You'll just be another name to disappear in the Facilities"

"We can disappear them too, Yuki, remember that." Chaos had made his way to the end of the street behind the Sector guards. He was just one man, but it was clear he was cornering the whole Sector Security team.

"No! _Bad_ Chaos, down!" I joked, "That's _not_ how we do things." Violence is not the answer, especially not when the other team is so much stronger than you are. Rex Goodwin is fully capable of destroying each and every one of us (except maybe Kalin) if he so chose, so _not_ cooperating is not yet an option.

"She has to go," Kalin had remained silent ever since Sector Security showed up, to my great concern. He finally spoke gravely, as though reading my eulogy. These people were driving me nuts. "Just like the man who built the Daedalus Bridge, she can't escape from Neo Dominos forever."

"Here!" Cyril grabbed me from the security guard and put me onto Kalin's motorcycle, turning it to the direction of the bridge "Ride!"

"Off the bridge and to my death?" I sputtered, "Are you people out of your mind?"

"You don't know Goodwin," Vincent muttered, parting his hair back to reveal his mark from the Facilities.

Of course I know Rex Goodwin. This is a man who went from infamous disgraced scientist (for having participated one of the worst calamities of the century) to outlaw/hero who single-handedly built half a bridge (!), then somehow to the director of one of the largest cities in Japan, in a ridiculously short span of time, and then be adored by the Neo Domino populace at large. If nothing else, Rex Goodwin is an accomplished politician, the most difficult type of people to deal with. So he wasn't a man I could escape from. Everything I achieved thus far remained at the mercy of Neo Domino City, thankfully, not for too much longer.

"I think I know Goodwin," I reassured them, "Tall guy, early forties, greyish hair. Yeah I know him. I used to wear my hair like that. Never got studs though, I always thought long hair went better with hoop earrings."

For that, Kalin wacked me upside the head, "we'll get you out." He whispered in my ear, I hugged him tightly, more for his comfort than mine. He had starved to death in those cells, this must hit him harder than it did me.

I had a plan, sort of. I had long ago devised a plan to evade the attention of Rex Goodwin. The goal of that plan is now impossible thanks to a certain magical lizard, but the plan is still good. After all, I have the perfect model to follow, somebody arrogant, vain, ambitious, but not quite smart enough to see the big picture. Somebody who managed to blackmail Rex Goodwin and get away with it. I am, of course, talking about Divine, the man who thinks he could control Goodwin, but was barely a side plot in the grand scheme of things. I just have to follow his example to convince Goodwin I'm no real threat, and more trouble to get rid of than keep.

Otherwise, well, let's just say I've never been very optimistic about the plan I came up with to save Chaos.

* * *

 **A/N:** 'They need more plausible plot' was the first thing that came to mind f when I heard Crow's 'legendary man' story, so I'm putting it here. I consider this plothole on par with Kalin's 'take over the government with 4 people' idea, both contains multiple levels of 'what's wrong with you'. And honestly, if Goodwin had managed to build it (!), they could just blow it up.

 **A/N 2:** Rex Goodwin mentioned that the Crimson Dragon could only be summoned if all 5 Signers were present, but the lizard was obviously there in Yusei and Jack' s duel, so I'm using the assumption that Crimson Dragon can only be summoned in its full form and reveal the future, etc. when all five Signers are present. Otherwise, it can appear, but not in its full form.

 **A/N 3:** So this story used to be a harem fic... And I don't mean the lovey-dovey kind, it was the hardcore, extenuating-circumstances, dubious consent kind. Obviously, the plot had undergone some serious adjustments, but some fragments of it is still showing up here or there, hence the acquisition of Crow and Kalin. More shall follow.


	18. Neo Domino City

**Disclaimer:** I do not own YGO 5Ds

 **A/N:** Btw, can't decide if I should let Yusei keep his scar or not. I think Yusei looked little bit better with the scar, but it seems unfair for Yuki to not save him from the Facilities, especially seeing as I'm writing a more realistic version of what the Facilities would be.

* * *

Arcardia were unlike the Dark Signer's lair in every way. The Arcadia towers rose above the crowd even in Domino City, a star in business and on the surface at least, a leader in the community. Never a man to deny himself earthly pleasures, Divine piled modern conveniences and exquisite antique alike into his living quarters, making the inside look more like a modernized Victorian mansion than the head office for an evil organization.

"Keep an eye on her then," The red-haired duelist said impatiently into the phone, sitting with his feet stretched out on the desk, "And if she seems tempted by that cursed satellite again, get somebody else to take over the pier. She's not _actually_ psychic, there shouldn't be any trouble." He slammed the phone into the receiver (remember people? phones used to have cords and receivers). Really, the nerve of these people, to bother him with the trivial details about day-to-day operations. He was not some meandering middle management, he was Divine! He was the man who would soon conquer this earth! Yet these mortals, these ants, they dared defy him. They'll be sorry, once he ruled this world, they'll all be sorry. The psychic duelist's powers resonated as his thoughts grew dark, causing the objects in his room to rattle and float dangerously.

"Sayer? You wanted to see me?" A soft feminine voice sounded at the door. Divine frowned at the name. Sayer was the name he was born with but he had long risen about that, after the discovery and development of his talents, after the foundation of Arcadia, after even the Director of the City conceded to his demands, he had named himself Divine. That's what he was, and one day the world is going to recognize that.

"Akiza, my Black Rose" Divine rose to greet his most valuable asset, the girl who was going to win him the world, "have a seat."

Akiza Izinski sat down uncertainly in front of Sayer, she trusted her mentor beyond all else, but even she would admit he seemed a little off sometimes. And this was definitely one of those times.

"Akiza," Divine began, he didn't miss the hint of uneasiness on Akiza's face. Good. The Black Rose is too powerful even for him to physically control, thus he needed her to fear him. It helps with her, compliance. "There's been a slight glitch in the Satellite, a bunch of riff-raffs that the Black Rose should get rid of, before they can do any damage to our cause."

Akiza nodded silently. She never quite understood what Sayer said about their mission to this world, but he saved her from her own desperations, and she was determined to repay him.

"I'll take care of it," she said once Sayer had stopped talking. Standing up, she shook her hair lose. Gone is the mild-mannered Akiza Izinski, in her place is Black Rose, the duelist who instilled fears in both sides of Domino City. She spared Sayer the barest of nods before making her way to destroy this new threat. Nothing has been able to stand in the way of her powers and nothing ever will.

* * *

"Ms. Tono," The impeccably dressed man addressed me cordially, as though he hadn't just sent his goons to kidnap me. "I'm glad we finally got a chance to meet." Rex Goodwin sat behind his desk while the guard who brought me here left me standing in front of it. I secretly growled in annoyance when I realized I didn't even get the benefit of being able to look down at him.

"Well, you did make it happen," I replied drily, as though commenting on the mud caked on my shoes. Classic Roman (not his brother Roman) features, perfect skin, muscles that could barely be contained in that business suit, if he weren't Goodwin, but was rather a decent human being, I know a couple of people who'd probably hit that. But him being, well, him, getting screwed by him just doesn't seem that appealing. I mean, it is exactly what I'm trying to avoid.

"Well," He paused, "I'm afraid our circumstances have dictated this meeting. I've been very concerned about your activities in the Satellite, Ms. Tono."

"Why?" I demanded, righteous anger slowly rising. I would admit, if only to myself, that everything I did had a selfish reason, a good reputation and a couple of reliable followers were much more valuable than anything else I could have gotten in that dump. Nonetheless, I might have done more for that city in a week than Goodwin did in the past however many years he was the director the Domino City. Not Neo Domino City mind you, the _entire_ city, from which his government profits, and yet felt responsible for only half of it.

"What troubling activities did I do?" I repeated the question, "was it giving these people access to water? Mildly improve security where I live? Or are you worried about fewer kids dying from hypothermia and malnutrition? What was it, Director Goodwin, out of everything I did, that arose your concerns?"

"Mr. Tono, I can see that you're understandably upset," The bastard continued smoothly. "You have done some very admirable things for the people of the Satellite, but I'm afraid that you've caused more chaos than you intended."

"I have?" that gave me pause. I didn't believe in any magical mumble-jumble way-back-when, this world is a whole other bag of worms. Here, I _know_ magic was real. Who knows, maybe the decreased moisture in the air would anger some comatose deity that would destroy the world? Well, it's no more ridiculous than the plot-dictated reasons for destroying the world.

"Yes. The world needs order, Mr. Tono," Crawford, I mean Goodwin, continued, "and Domino needs order, now more than ever. You see, both Neo Domino and Old Domino had each reached the perfect balance of light and dark, good and evil."

"Wealth and poverty," I interrupted. "With Neo Domino's wealth derived from the poverty of Satellite lives." I have no problem with capitalism, but equal opportunity is the whole foundation of it. Not equal results, but at least equal opportunity.

"But that's their place in the world," Goodwin responded lightly, "oil in the engines of our great society, keeping the economy afloat, keeping the wheels of our world turning so to speak. That's their place, that's the life into which they were born, anything else would simply be preposterous. Of course, we leave a chance for everybody, even in the Satellite. Sadly, trash remains trash, and so few of them ever grasps the chance."

"So you locked the doors up, set the building on fire and left a window ajar on the 20-feet tall ceiling," I retorted, "and you're the champion of the people. Most people in even Neo Domino, and more in the Satellite get burnt out in this engine of yours, see their dreams go up in smoke then disappear as 'pollution of the world'. If that's the fate of the majority, you're doing something wrong." It's like in an exam, if more than half of the class failed the test, chances are, the problem isn't with the students.

"You're too stubborn for your own good, Ms. Tono," Goodwin grinned viciously, "You satellite scum need to learn your place." Despite myself, I shuddered. This is a man willing to destroy the entire world, and now, as much as I hated to admit it, he could do whatever he wanted to me without even fear of repercussion. Perceiving my fear, Goodwin let out a single satisfied chuckle.

"If you don't have something more substantial than a vague desire in maintaining the status quo, I'm afraid we can't possibly reach an agreement" I suddenly said. I didn't have the protection of being a Signer, nor did I own any powerful monsters that could physically come to my aid, but I'll be damned if I surrendered to something Konomi and 4Kids cooked up. "But let's stop this bickering, you could have had any of your lackeys dispose of me if you so choose, so there's a reason you chose to spend time on this Satellite scum. Let's cut to the chase, shall we? I have _actual_ work to do."

"How very perceptive of you," Goodwin's feral grin faded, "I'm interested in your last duel with the satellite Yusei Fudo, just as I'm sure you would be interested in remaining on the good side of the Neo Domino government."

"Domino government," I corrected automatically, then understood what he said, my duel with 'Yusei', "I would have thought your spies have told you all about that," unsure of what exactly he knew, I disguised my caution under a thick layer of sarcasm.

"As you must understand," Goodwin looked annoyed at my question, "it is much faster to gain such information from the source, rather than test it ourselves in countless experimentations. And it's much easier for you to talk now, than being encouraged to change your mind later."

Part of me wanted to tell him everything and plead for my life. I've never actually been in a situation where my life was in direct danger before, and I'm sad to admit that I wasn't handling it very well. What kept me going is the frustration of my current lifestyle (if you can even call it that), and knowing that this man is ultimately at fault, or at least enough at fault that I could blame it all on him.

"How about we duel for it then," I suggested. I didn't have a lot of cards to play, so I picked one I thought he might fall for. "Put all our cards on the table." No, I couldn't resist the pun.

"I don't see why not," Goodwin leaned back onto the couch, "I understand you don't turbo-duel, that's fine. I'll even give you the chance to duel our champion, Jack Atlas."

A thinly veiled threat, I've only revealed my dislike for being extremely distracted while driving to a select few. Well, two can play at that game.

"So, do you want me to win or lose?" I asked with all the sincerity I could muster, Goodwin snarled.

"Come, Director Goodwin," I sniggered, "Jack Atlas isn't a _bad_ duelist, but I certainly wouldn't be the first duel you've staged for him."

"I've seen you duel," Goodwin countered, losing his cool, "and I'm confident you would be no match for Jack."

A bluff, I decided, I never did enough to mark myself on the radar for somebody of Goodwin's, I shudder to say it, status. And I doubt even Sector Security recorded and stored random street duels by nameless duelists.

"Let's set our wagers then," I ventured, "I'll duel Atlas..."

"You want more than being released," Goodwin noted, amused.

"Obviously," I answered drily, "I do realize that Sector Security may pick me up anytime they wish, so I must insist on getting something out of these little visits."

"There is something you have in mind," Goodwin noted again with a glint in his eye.

"That's right," I confirmed, "Dr. Zigzix is a known expert in energy usage and production-"

"No problem," Goodwin waved his hand dismissively. "Beat Jack Atlas, and he's all yours."

'I was hoping he would design a mass-producible heater for the Satellite,' I choked back and began a violent coughing fit. I must have bluffed my hand extremely well, my entire life isn't worth a year of Zigzix's time. Screw the 'all lives are precious' BS, some lives are inherently worth more than others due to the effect they have on humanity. Zigzix produced the closest thing humanity might ever get to a perpetual motion machine, he was the Einstein, Tesla, Newton of this time, or at least amongst the ranks of Fleming or Leibniz; revolutionary in his own field if not destined to change the dynamics of the world.

To put things in a more practical perspective, there're at least hundreds of hypothermia-related deaths in the Satellite every year. Nervin had been able to design several prototypes for a heater, but nothing that's both safe for the underage population and mass-producible with the limited resources in the Satellite. Then there're other, less 'life- _saving_ technologies I would gain access to.

"Cool!" I managed, my brain temporarily at a blank. "Get me a contract, and let's duel Jacky."

* * *

"Well," Cyril sat back down, "I've laid out all the pros and cons, and Yuki is still in the hands of the Sector. What should we do?" Normally, briefings are Nervin's job, but seeing as Kalin was present and impossible to get rid of, both Vincent and Chaos agreed that it was best for Nervin to perhaps 'nap' upstairs during this meeting. Also conspicuously absent was Greiger, who had returned from his undisclosed excursion, but Vincent had made a concious effort to exclude him from any discussions of importance.

"We go save her of course!" Galen said indignantly, his pink hair bouncing with the effort of his words. He didn't expand any further as he felt there was no need for explanations.

"With what?" Vincent demanded, standing up and walking wildly around the room, flailing his arms for effect. "We can't exactly rush into Domino City. If any of us can even _get_ to Domino City, we wouldn't be here anymore."

"We could..." Teddy said hesitantly, "I heard Yuki talking to herself about some sort of tunnel, that we can use to get to Domino City." The room fell into an uncomfortable silence, each pondering the implications of a way out of the Satellite, and Yuki's secret knowledge of that passage .

"Let's check her room then," Cyril said, carefully weighing his words, "see if she left any hints or designs behind." He wasn't entirely sure what he wanted to do if he found it.

Vincent didn't object this time, nor did he expect anybody else to object. If nothing else, he wouldn't mind knowing where that tunnel was. He would prefer having Yuki back of course, her ideas sounded like dreams, yet somehow he saw her building it up into reality each day. But saving her from the Facilities is just not practical. He was past the age when he would risk everything to save a hero, and he had the rest of the Magicians to worry about.

"Before we go," Felice interrupted to Vincent's surprise, "I think we should decide what to do with the information in case we find it. Is any of you going to do something about Yuki?"

"Of course!" Galen replied, then paled when realized he was the only one, his eyes shot accusingly to each member of the group.

"No," Chaos replied decisively for the group. "We can't. Satellite, and I mean the _whole_ of Satellite, finally has a chance. We're expanding, Galen, we have 30 people now, we're growing to 300 this week! Can you imagine what we can do in two months, two years? The Satellite has real potential for change here, maybe not to Domino standards, but to provide some semblance of a normal life. We're not going to squander that chance to save a single person." It pained him to the core to remember who brought about that chance, but that was in the past now, and in the Satellite, those who reminisce about the past is usually buried with it.

"She was going to save you!" Galen shouted angrily, his large brown eyes glistening with tears, "When you were caught, she was going to save you. She had everything all planned out! And now you're just going leave her in some cell?"

Chaos nodded, looking solemn but his mind already elsewhere. He wasn't a smart man, he knew _._ He liked to call himself street-smart but the fact was, he knew he wasn't a smart man. He can't run this place on his own, not without running it to the ground. So when they do search Yuki's room, he must make sure he's the one to find any traces of information about that tunnel, and destroy it. If the tunnel is discovered, there's no way he could stop any of these people from going to Domino City and selling their patents now that Yuki is gone. Then their Satellite factory falls apart, and with it any hope the Satellite has of becoming anything different than the dump it was.

I knew it, Kalin smiled maliciously, the expression on his face drove the entire room silent, even though he refused to say a single word. All your 'friends' are useless, or worse than useless- selfish. Everything you tried to do for this place, and just when you need them, they'll stab you in the back just like everybody else.

Thanks to Kalin's illusions, the only person who saw him when he brought Chaos back was Cyril, and even he didn't see Chaos with the blue-haired duelist. And Kalin certainly wasn't going to offer them the easy way out. Maybe when that girl realized the truth about this world, she would be converted to his views and give up trying to save it, just like he did, Kalin mused a little sadly, almost feeling like mourning the part of himself that withered and dead within Domino cells.

"Psst," Felice stayed behind as the others rushed upstairs to look for any information pertaining to this secret tunnel, carefully placing herself beside Kalin without making it obvious, "Don't do anything stupid."

Kalin looked curiously at the white-haired girl beside him, so she thinks rescuing her friend is stupid?

"Yuki has a plan," She continued, "she always does. All we need to do is hold down the fort, and not ruin it for her."

"You think she can come back," Kalin remarked, sounding completely nonchalant.

"I know she can," Felice replied with such energy in her eyes that she reminded him painfully of Yusei from their Enforcer days. She glanced over, seeing him obviously not convinced, she added, "tell you what, transfers to the Facilities take at least three days, let's take two days to gather information, devise a plan. And if Yuki isn't back by then, we'll act." Even fear for the infamous Kalin Kessler wasn't going to stop her.

"You're not concerned they would find the tunnel," Kalin said again. If anybody find the tunnel and was discovered outside the Satellite, security around the leader of their gang would naturally be enhanced.

"Galen ran up there first," Felice replied with a malicious smirk that rivaled Kalin's own, "that used to be his room, if there's anything inside, he'd find it first and destroy it."

Kalin nodded and didn't say anything more. Maybe this group was a little better than his own.

* * *

 **A/N :** Black Rose-Akiza is really scary, and I mean _really_ scary when you consider the kind of damage she _can_ do and would be _willing_ to do.

 **A/N 2:** I've made another attempt to humanize the OCs, not sure how that's been working out so far.

I mean, nobody owes Yuki their loyalties, and she was what brought the group together. Her little gang hadn't had time to merge together yet, which is why they were falling apart immediately after her departure. I think realistically, she'd be lucky if she got as much support as she did.


	19. Battlling Black Rose

**Disclaimer:** I do not own YGO 5Ds

* * *

Goodwin motioned a guard over, whispered something, and the man left with a bow. I sat still, sipping on coffee that have cooled to room temperature and examining the short contract Goodwin had typed up in the meantime.

"Jack," Goodwin smiled and stood up as the arrogant pointy-haired blond entered.

"Goodwin," Jack acknowledged the Director with a curt nod, "so who's this chump I'm supposed to beat this time."

Dressed in a simple black tank top and form-fitting white leather pants (that would have made me drool if I weren't so distracted), Jack Atlas took command of the room as soon as he walked in. He automatically became the centre of attention, even the guards naturally gravitated towards him. I guess that's what they call 'star quality'.

"That would be me," I said with an absent-minded smile. I had more important things on my mind. There were a thousand things I wanted Zigzix to work on, and a million ways to divide his time. Poor scheduling might significantly impact our productivity. Translated into language people understand, that means food, shelter and real weapons that would prevent me from being kidnapped by the City at will. Those considerations instinctively took priority over a teenage idol and a children's card game, however important that game might be.

"You're kidding me, right?" Jack turned to Goodwin with a scowl, "you want me to duel this, this kid? I won't duel a kindergartner. The King doesn't duel small children!"

"You know," Still distracted by ZigZix, I accidentally said what was really on my mind "If Seto Kaiba and Joey Wheeler had a kid, you would be that kid."

Goodwin snickered, covering his mouth with one gloved hand.

"Who in the world is Joey Wheeler?" Jack demanded angrily. I looked back at him innocently, it was an honest comment.

"Ahem, I believe he was friends with Yugi Motou, and a great duelist in his own right," Goodwin spoke with a sincere smile on his lips, I don't think I've ever seen him like this, in the anime or this world.

"Or a blond Vegeta," I added as the thought suddenly occurred to me. Focused slightly and perusing the contract Goodwin handed me, I continued the disorganized train of thought "duel, Jack, Zigzix."

"She can't even talk straight," Jack objected, "I can't duel her! The sight of my dragon would sent her home crying for mommy."

It took everything I had to hold back the 'why don't you go home cry to your mommy,' joke.

"Jacky, Jacky, Jacky," I smirked, it was the only way to hide the huge grin I had, "It's truly unfortunate for me that you left the Satellite so early, before I could win your Red Dragon Archfiend from you."

"In your dreams kid," Jack scoffed, obviously not taking the threat seriously. Regardless of what I've done, my lack of dueling success is enough for many people to write me off in this world. This is a very messed-up world.

"It would hardly appropriate for the King to turn down a challenge from a kid," I had a hundred and one ways to force Jack into a duel, this felt the most fitting, seeing as it originated from Seto Kaiba himself. "I can see the headlines now, 'Jack Atlas, Master of Disaster, flees from 13 year-old girl at top speed."

"You take that back!" Jack growled. He's cute when he's angry.

"Make me!" I challenged, he'd have to level up quite a few times before he was a true threat in a duel.

"Fine, you got your wish" Jack growled, "Jack Atlas is going to crush you."

"Of course you are," I answered complacently as though speaking to a small child, my eyes still glued to the contract in front of me. "Everything looks good," I pushed it back to Goodwin, "sign it, give me a copy, email a copy to my account and we can begin."

"Don't ignore me!" Jack raged, rushing up and grabbing me at the collar. "How dare you ignore the man who Rules the Duels, the Master of Faster? I am Jack Atlas, and I shall _not_ be overlooked!"

"So I've noticed," I commented drily. "How very, energetic of you."

"What's that supposed to mean!" Jack demanded again. At least he wasn't the type to spit while he talked.

"I hope you can maintain that energy after my monsters are through with you," I smirked and patted him on the cheek, made possible despite our height difference because he was still holding me up by the front of my shirt.

He grunted in protest but put me down.

"Samurais?" Goodwin asked while emailing the virtual copy of our contract to my Satellite headquarters, "That is the deck you use?" I couldn't tell if he was trying to give Jack a heads up or hint at how much he really knew about me.

"It was," I admitted, slightly embarrassed, slightly defiant, "I mean it still is, but I left my decks in the Satellite, just in case I didn't make it back."

"So you're dueling me with, what, your backup deck?" Jack demanded, I could almost see the steam rising off his perfectly-groomed pointy hair.

"Actually," I admitted, "I'm not dueling you with anything at all if I don't somehow put a deck together first." But that's not my problem, Goodwin wanted the duel, let him worry about it.

"Here!" Jack tossed me a virtual tablet displaying duel monsters cards while plopping himself onto the sofa, "I will not beat you until you're at your best. Pick whatever cards you need for our duel and Mina will get them for you."

"Are you sure?" I looked at him skeptically, scrolling down the list. There must have been several thousand cards listed, many of which was better than the cards found in his own deck.

"Jack Atlas never lies!" Jack jumped up, being challenged, then questioned by a younger girl must have set him off "Mina offered me a complete selection, those were only the cards I rejected from my deck."

Right, I thought sarcastically, Jack Atlas never lies, except everything about his history, and to his friends. I would be the first to admit Atlas was hot, especially with the accent. I still wasn't sure if it was Australian or British, but I'll take it. I will also admit that I didn't like him, not even the improved version later in the show. He was probably my least favorite protagonist as far as personality was concerned, so I would enjoy teaching him a lesson.

"How generous," I said instead, instilling all the sarcasm from my private thoughts into those two words.

"If you want my generosity, you're gonna have to earn it!" Jack positively exploded at my comment, just realizing that offering your opponents the cards you rejected might not be the best way to show off, "if by some miracle you manage to beat me, you can keep whatever cards you chose." He said with his nose in the air. If he bent his neck back any further, I might be able to see the bottom of his chin.

"Are you sure?" I was extremely tempted of course, but I needed to seal the deal while I had the chance.

"Jack Atlas is a man of his words!" He repeated, "You can pick any cards you want!"

Considering his financial situation after Goodwin's death, he probably didn't own any of these cards, but I wasn't going to turn down Goodwin's private stash. Instead, I'd confirm the deal while I had the chance.

"Thank you so much, Jacku-sama! Thank you too Goodwin-sama!" I stood up, cupped my hands under my chin and bend one leg backwards in a typical anime fashion, then leaned onto Goodwin to glomp his arm. Half-mockingly, half sincere. No, I wasn't above flattery. After my duel with Crow, I gave back the cards I borrowed from Kalin (without his knowledge), so I was once again without a deck, which means I had no way to defend myself against the Sector. It sounds ridiculous even in my own head, but by Ra it was the truth. Thanking Goodwin would prevent him from rescinding on our agreement after the duel, plus, hugging Jack felt too much like harassment.

Jack hmmphed, Goodwin sighed and rubbed the bridge of his nose but made no objections. He really doesn't think I could defeat Jack Atlas, I realized.

I hesitated at the deck selection menu. Of course I needed a decent enough deck to defeat a protagonist, but if I get to keep the deck in the end, I also wanted to add as many powerful cards as I could. 60 cards (yes, I've already discarded the notion of a 40 card deck) could fix up quite a few decks in the Satellite, and as much as I hated to admit it, dueling was the best way to get rid of Satellite gangs and Sector Security.

A Chaos deck then, I finally decided amongst the numerous possible archetypes (okay, Chaos-Dragon-Lightsworn). It felt appropriate, it always does when getting back what's yours. It's also easy to add a variety of powerful monsters to this deck, and worked reasonably well with a 60 card deck.

By the time I was done, I could see Goodwin's smile freezing and about to fall off his face.

"Thank you Goodwin-sama!" I said again sweetly, "and thank you too Mina-kun!"

"You're very welcome, Yuki-chan," the blue haired girl smiled, patted me on the head. While fully aware of the cost of my deck, she was just happy to carry out the orders of her beloved Jack. "I have to warn you though, no matter what cards you get, you'll never beat Atlas-sama in a duel."

"That's right!" Jack agreed, "thank you Mina." The blue-haired girl blushed.

"Was that truly necessary?" Goodwin asked wearily, gesturing to the cards I just received "This can't possibly be better than your last deck. I should think you've evolved beyond this by now."

"I'm sorry that we satellites don't have everything at our fingertips," I snapped back, "I need to grab every card I could at every opportunity."

"You're not going to manage to beat me with that deck!" Jack exclaimed, honestly offended. "You put it together in fifteen minutes! A deck doesn't just need powerful monsters you know, it needs a balance, you need to rely on every card in your deck in order to win." Duelists here don't get enough powerful cards, thus they rarely make significant changes to their deck, so Jack was obvious surprised at me using a deck other than the one to which I was accustomed. The truth is, if I hadn't made similar decks before, I wouldn't have been able to select an even adequate deck based on imagination and presumptions either.

"Yeah, this deck might clog a little," I admitted, a little ashamed at how greedy I got, "and I'd get a couple of dead-draws here and there, but it'll be worth it."

"You do remember you'll have to beat me to keep the deck, don't you?" Jack asked skeptically.

"Right," I nodded again, not at all concerned. I've seen enough of Jack's duels to know, I could defeat Jack Atlas. He wasn't going to be a threat until he rejoins Yusei at least. After all, I knew more about this card game than he could dream of, and Yugioh was a game all about knowing. After he gained the power of the Crimson Dragon, maybe he'd be a challenge, it's impossible to tell at this point, the whole magic thing confuses me. Right now though, especially without the help of the Crimson Dragon anymore, he was barely a Joey.

The room fell into an uncomfortable silence broken only by Mina coming in and out, bringing the cards I requested. I stared at the beautifully piercing purple eyes in front of me and found myself wondering, why did Goodwin put Jack on a pedestal? Surely there were better ways to train a duelist. It was not necessary, nor was it attempted, for any others Signers. The money angle also seemed obsolete, considering Goodwin was trying to destroy this world through magical means.

I can't ask that question though, without risking revealing the depth of my knowledge regarding his non-human involvements.

"So Jack," I decided to strike up a conversation with the striking teenager in front of me before Goodwin could ask me any uncomfortable questions, "are you still using your first duel runner?" I was thinking of getting (/hiring/blackmailing) Yusei to make a duel runner for me too, almost nothing else would run on Satellite roads.

"As a matter of fact I am," A vein on his forehead popped, "what's it to you?"

Oops, forgot that was a sore spot.

"Jack has won every duel he was in since he came to Neo Domino City," Goodwin defended his pet project, "so with little damage, we have had no need to replace his duel runner."

"One more question," I couldn't help stirring up a little more trouble. "I'm assuming that Jack here is making you a small fortune, where is that money going?"

Jack certainly didn't get it, not if his future finances were any indication. Rex Goodwin had no need for money if he wanted to destroy the material world.

Jack froze at the question.

"Jack gets a cut of course," Goodwin answered smoothly, "and the rest goes to Domino City's public reserve."

"Hmm," I wrinkled my nose in thought, "so none goes into your bank account?"

"Why would he need a private bank account?" Jack wondered aloud, "Directors have full access to all city funds."

"Of course," Goodwin rubbed the bridge of his nose again, it can't be easy dealing with Jack Atlas, "only so I could better serve this city."

"What about when you retire?" I pressed with an innocent smile.

"Why would he quit?" Jack jumped in again before Goodwin had answer, obviously mocking my ignorance, "These are life-long positions you know."

"No, no, I did not know that." I responded stiffly, shocked speechless by the current state of Japanese politics.

"That's the last of it," Mina came in and unknowingly broke the tension, handing me the last most powerful cards in my newly-picked deck.

I marveled at the makeshift deck, with many cards I didn't even have in the other world, when this really _was_ just a children's card game.

"Let's go then," Jack stood up impatiently, "I'm going to show you how a _real_ duelist does things. I'll even let you go first."

I merely followed with a smile, there's no need to bicker at this point. I was also concerned he'd take my precious deck away if I pissed him off too much before defeating him. Mina showed us into apparently a private dueling arena inside the government building. Either Domino City had absolutely no financial auditing, or none of the auditors saw a problem with the decision to dedicate a large area in the center of a government building in the middle of the City for private card games. Knowing this world, both were equally likely.

* * *

Akiza stepped swiftly off the boat, mildly irritated. She hated going to the Satellite by boat, she hated the uncertainty of it all, the feeling of not being on solid ground and not in control, but Sayer never seemed to notice. Akiza checked her surrounding offhandedly, more out of habit than caution. She had been here several times at Sayers request, as experience had told her time and again, nothing here could harm her. Nothing at all could harm her unless she let it, as the Black Rose, she was invincible.

Stepping into an alleyway to avoid gawkers, she released her powers and felt them responding to her control.

"Fallen Angel of Roses (lv7, 2400/1300), come forth," she selected the monster from her deck and the monster responded. A seven feet tall humanoid monster crossed into this dimension and appeared out of thin air. Dressed in a white dress and black leggings, her wings and hair were both a deep lavender, vines of the same color extended from her arms, and wrapped harmlessly around her body, though the occasional sparks of magic would suggest otherwise. She floated in front of her mistress, waiting for her orders.

"Take me to where the Magicians are," Duel monster were so simple, Black Rose didn't need to worry about wording, or tone or the nuances that dictated human interactions, her thoughts were directly transmitted into all those she summoned, and they obeyed without question. Her monster extended a vine to hold Akiza up, and rose above the buildings to fly towards their destination.

Sayer had long reached an agreement with Goodwin that Sector Security would 'neglect' Akiza's use of her powers. In exchange, the Director of Domino City requested tight control over Satellite-Domino borders, which is why even she was forced to cross under legal pretences.

"The witch!" Her landing provoked agitation and terror amongst the residents of this dump, as it always does. Witch is one of the better names she'd been called. Black Rose dismissed her audience as inconsequential, none of them would understand her, and none of them deserved the chance to even try.

"The Black Rose!" One muscular purple-haired man ran out of the house that was her target, "What do you want?" He demanded. His pretense of courage was laughable, she thought, she could smell the fear dripped down his body, and according to her experience, there'll soon be something a lot less pleasant dripping down also. Akiza wrinkled her nose, an absolutely adorable expression completely hidden by the flailing long hair that covered her face. That's one of them, she nodded, Sayer had shown her pictures of her targets.

"I want you to die!" She responded vehemently, her voice was an ear-splitting roar that inspired nothing but fear and despair. They didn't deserve a duel from her, Black Rose decided, they barely deserve to breathe the same air as she did.

Chaos didn't hesitate as he ran away from the house, out of the front yard and towards the witch who appeared without warning.

"Run!" He shouted, "It's Black Rose!" There were maybe 50 people in the extension wing they just added onto the house, and twice that many in Hogan's classroom nearby. Under the best case scenario where the Black Rose was after him alone, an ensuing stampeded might still kill half a dozen people. Instead, the members of the house filed out from the living room where they had congregated after finding nothing upstairs.

As Chaos dodged each attack more precariously than the last, they stood by helplessly, not even able to reach the Black Rose, as she was held up by her monster hovering fifteen feet above ground.

Kalin stepped into the shadows and with a wave of his hands, blended perfectly into his surroundings. Since you're so eager to let her rot, let's see how you fare without her, he thought cynically. Completely ignoring the fact that Yuki would be worse than useless in a situation like this.

"More?" Black Rose shrieked triumphantly upon seeing the new arrivals, her hazel eyes filled up with blood, now a dark auburn. "The more the merrier! Welcome to _my_ world!"

Cyril kicked open the door to the shed, grabbing a few shovels and handing them out. More psychological than anything else against the monster in the air with her mistress, attacking the mortals on the ground with vines stronger than steel.

"You want to escape from your fate?" Black Rose screeched, "That just won't do! I didn't escape from mine, why would you get to escape from yours? Let's see, I know! Say hello to this beauty, Revival Rose (lv4, 1300/1300)"

For a second, the wonderment of the situation overwhelmed their despair as a giant shrub rose quickly out of the ground, several rose budded at the top and immediately came into full bloom, just tall enough to parallel the second story window and shooting explosive seeds.

"I wonder if you can eat it," Felice mused aloud, she had vegetables a couple of times. By some miracle, a batch had managed to grow on Satellite soil for two years. They were delicious.

"Teddy," Vincent's eyes focused on the youngest of their group, "get Nervin to evacuate the factory, and Hogan to evacuate the school. Take Greiger with you." He added as an afterthought. Greiger was a spy for Domino, so if the Black Rose was sent by Rex Goodwin, the kids were less likely to be attacked with Greiger by their side.

"But," Teddy looked at the giant stalks of plants and the tiny humans determined to fend them off.

"Go!" Cyril pushed him back inside the house, "We'll buy you as much time as we can." He'd be surprised if the evacuations hadn't started already, but they can't have all the Magicians dying together, somebody has to spread their name, carry the torch so to speak.

No sooner did his words fall when Chaos was finally grabbed by the tentacles of Revival Rose while diving out of the way of the explosive seeds shot from its flowers.

"Think they're pretty? Well don't forget all roses have thorns!" The Black Rose cackled in a shrill voice before commanding her plant to discard of the human they captured. Revival Rose tightened its grip on its mortal captive, its thorns digging into flesh, then threw him towards to wall. Chaos managed to turn slightly in midair, so he crushed into the hastily-constructed extension wing instead of the main frame of the house, planks and dirt in the wall crumbled under impact and broke his fall. The ex-nightwalker crawled off the ground with a groan, barely managing to get out of the way as another whiplash was aimed in his direction. At least the extension wing is empty, he thought a little hazily as he made his way back towards those monstrous plants, in front of which the other four people were huddled together, beating off the toying attacks of Black Rose's monsters. If Nervin managed to get out of the way, certainly Hogan would have taken the kids three blocks away by now.

"Get out of the way," Nervin struded out of the front door with an uncharacteristic smirk, "and let a professional handle this."

"Why are you still here?" Galen shoved the taller arachnid-haired engineer back into the house, "you're supposed to evacuate!"

"Wait, wait, watch the backpack," Nervin struggled against the smaller but much stronger pink-haired teenager, as well as the weight of his oversized, overstuffed backpack. "Look, I got Teddy to lead them away, okay? Now let me work my magic." He braved the skeptical glances shot his way with surprising grace. Standing behind the group, he carefully placed his five-foot-tall backpack onto the ground, took out a glass bottle (labelled K-Fizz) the size of his arm and lit the cloth stuffed at the opening of the bottle on fire. He handed it to Chaos standing in front of him and instructed simply, "Throw."

Chaos obliged, tossing it twenty feet away and crushing the bottle on one of Revival Rose's rigid thorns. The contents of the glass burnt upon impact and stuck to the plant, spreading the blaze quickly. The plant writhed as though in pain, its vines quickly retreating trying to beat out the flames.

"And that," Nervin drew himself up taller, waiting to bath in the admiration and adulation of his peers, "is what you call a Molotov cocktail."

"Let me try!" Galen shoved him aside and grabbed another bottle out of his bag.

"Careful with that!" Nervin admonished, "it'll will burn if the bottle breaks, if you banged it against anything or if you so much as throw it too fast."

Galen was a little weaker, and this time, the plant was smart enough to block the glass with its vines. But the bottle broke on impact and the flammable contents of that bottle stuck onto it like over-chewed gum on the underside of a desk. The flames roared.

"It's all in the choice of adhesives," Nervin added proudly as he lit another one on fire and handed it to Cyril.

The plant shook and flailed its numerous vines in what was presumably pain, though it did not look anywhere close to being defeated.

Holding a lit bottle in his hands, Vincent gave Chaos a meaningful look, not wanting to talk in case Black Rose could overhear them with her superpowers. Chaos nodded, picking up the next bottle with his uninjured left arm. Aiming at its roots, Vincent threw first, Chaos immediately followed, giving Vincent enough time to throw the next one, soon enveloping the main stem of the plant in a scalding gasoline-fueled blaze.

Black Rose had watched with some amusement at the pitiful struggles of these people, they always struggle, but they'll never win. This one's different though, she's never seen this before, her monsters were actually hurt!

"Come back to me, Revival Rose!" Upon her words, the plant disappeared, leaving the flammable semi-liquids stuck to it to fall harmlessly onto the ground and quickly burning out. Black Rose spoke a little more calmly, though the malice in her words were unmistakable, "Come forth! Rose Tentacles (lv6,2200/1200). And just for the heck of it, I think I'll summon another Revival Rose! All your attempts are futile! You are helpless in my presence! My powers and my monsters are infinite!" An unharmed Rivival Rose appeared exactly where the first one had been, as another even larger, more vicious looking plant erupted from the ground. With one swing of its vines, it crushed the roof of the second floor and half the walls, revealing Yuki's cherished teddy bear blanket for all to see.

The mortals paled and began eyeing the house thoughtfully. Now that evacuations were complete, their best chance of survival is to flee separately, using the house as a temporary barrier. With any luck, Black Rose can't catch up to all of them even if her monster could fly.

"Buy me one minute!" Felice said quickly, rushing back into the house. That witch had a point, defeating her monsters wouldn't help at all when she could just summon two to replace it. The white-haired girl dug through Vincent's pile of scraps to uncover his motorcycle. Chaos is injured, plus he's too big to fit through those two plants, so's Vincent. Neither Galen nor Cyril could ride as well as she did, so if this is going to work, it has to be her. She conveniently left Nervin out of her deliberations.

Felice closed her eyes and took a deep breath, tuning out the chaos outside and focusing only on the runner in front of her. Adjusting the seat so her feet could reach the pedals, she claimed the driver's seat and accelerated towards the front door.

"Coming through!" She shouted, grabbing two unlit bottles out of Nervin's hands as she passed, accelerating past her friends and onto the twisted roots of Rose Tentacle as she made her way diagonally upwards along the tilted stems of the plant. Both plants took a couple of swats at her, but along its main stem, protected by its many convoluted shoot and leaves, she was safer than outside. Until, Felice aimed towards the gap between Rose Tentacles and Revival Rose, the entirety of which was under the guard of their swinging vines, and felt her runner leap into the air.

Both plants aimed for her, swatting at her like trying to kill a fly with spoons, many many spoons. She ducked Revival Rose's seeds, but not before one appendage from Tentacle Rose hit her in the back, her direction was adjusted just a little, just enough for her to be in the way of a vine she had already dodged.

Felice turned her runner, so the vine hit the motorcycle instead, snatching it and smashing it onto the ground. Vincent's gonna be so upset when he sees this, Felice mused. She had let go of the motorcycle half a second before it was grabbed, the momentum kept her flying in the air, past the defenses of both plants, and she saw her chance. The Magician threw one bottle, then the second one more forcefully then than the last, letting the two collide in midair as momentum drove them into the witch.

Had Akiza been more experienced, she could have dodged, or blocked, or literally anything else given her almost complete control over duel monsters. But she never had anybody fight back like this, nor was she prepared against it. Without any orders, Fallen Angel of Roses saw the approaching flame and closed her wings to protect her mistress, inevitably setting the very-flammable feathers ablaze. With a loud shriek, the duel monster flapped her burning wings as she fell towards the ground with Akiza, managing to lower the redhead to a slightly safer height before disappearing with a pained wail. Akiza's monster kept the flames away from her, but she broker he leg in the fall, that and the shock distracted her from the control of her magic, causing both plants to dissipate back into thin air.

Felice thought she was up maybe 30 feet in the air before she started falling again, she saw the roof of their house (what's left of it), the newly constructed dorms that stood out against their dreary background, and then her friends on the ground growing bigger and bigger.

"Over here," She heard somebody whisper in her ear as she fell into Kalin's waiting arms.

"How?" She asked confused, the impact alone should have broken his arms or her back.

"Magic," The Dark Signer's lips curled up.

Akiza ran. She wasn't sure if she could summon another monster at this point, and she wasn't going to risk her life to try. The Magicians watched the retreat Black Rose cautiously as they dumped whatever dirt they could to douse out the flames, they weren't crazy enough to test if the witch had any tricks up her sleeves.

* * *

 **A/N:** Yes, the 'crying home to your mommy' is from the Abridge series. If you haven't watched it yet, you really should.

 **A/N 2:** Jack definitely looks like the result of a SetoxJoey pairing. XD I still don't like him though, I mean he tied Rally onto a frigging boat at set it out to sea! What if Yusei didn't jump into the waters to save him? What then?

 **A/N 3:** I"m not great with battle scenes, or descriptive scenes in general, I much prefer light banter. But I had the idea of fighting real-life duel monsters with modern technology and I couldn't resist. And no, we haven't completely upgraded from cards to Molotov cocktails. Too lazy to change it, should have added an RPG.


	20. Dueling Jack Atlas

**Disclaimer:** I do not own YGO 5Ds

* * *

"Director Goodwin, we have news from-" Lazar, the-technically deputy-director who dressed like a clown walked into the Stadium at the most inopportune time, "oh is this a duel? I always love seeing the great Jack Atlas in action."

Well, he certainly isn't going to help my chances of getting out of here, neither is Goodwin if that constipated look on his face is any indication.

"A satellite! In a duel! And here of all places. I could have her thrown in the Facilities right now if you'd like." Lazar offered gleefully as he recognized me, seems like he got caught up in the situation. I know his sob story, that doesn't deter my strong dislike for the man. But he did look a little like Team Rocket, so that does add some points in his favor. Neither Goodwin nor even Mina objected to Lazar's proposal.

"Lazar, just a second" I called out, stopping the Vice Director of Domino City before he could leave. The clown who broke into my house only days before glared back at me smugly, I could see his delight in me being trapped in Domino City, which he must have thought was his territory. But he had misread the situation entirely. This time, he had no control over the room, his opinion couldn't possibly make matters worse for me. So, as the idea occurred to me, I stopped him, to do something I really wanted to do, but didn't get the chance last time, I punched him in the face.

"That's for trying to frame Vincent," I smiled cheerfully, grabbing a fistful of his shirt and swung again, "and that's for Chaos."

Technically, Chaos wasn't his fault, it was mine. But I needed to punch somebody for it, and I certainly wasn't going to punch myself.

As I let go, the purple-haired man immediately stepped back several paces, still speechless from the shock, and cringing as I straightened.

"Don't worry, we're even, for now," I smirked as the clown shrunk back under my gaze, then again when noticing the blood on my knuckles "I won't hold it against you for trying to arrest me back there, till next time."

Lazar looked at Goodwin and I in turn, before wincing at the pain from his bruises, and making an exit as well.

I turned back to face Jack Atlas at the other end of the arena with a satisfied smile, "Let's get this started, shall we?"

* * *

 **Turn 1, Yuki's Turn; Yuki 4000, Jack 4000**

"I summon, Raiden, Hand of the Lightsworn (lv 4, tuner, 1700/1000), in attack mode, I activate his special effect, which allows me to send the top two cards of my deck to the graveyard." No Lightsworn monsters were sent to the grave, so my monster's attack remained unchanged.

"Now I lay two cards face down and end my turn." I announced a little louder than necessary, forgetting the sound system that lined this auditorium.

"A tuner monster on the first turn!" Mina exclaimed. I don't know why she was so excited, half of Yusei's deck was tuners.

 **Turn 2, Jack's Turn; Yuki 4000, Jack 4000**

"My move!" Jack stood impressively, looking intimidating even from twenty feet away. 'Looking' being the operative word, I knew everything there was to know about him, and really, he was just a spoiled brat. It takes a certain gift to manage to become so petulant growing up in the Satellite. Now that the 'Destined' had lost their edge, Jack was nowhere close to being a threat.

"First, when you have a monster on the field and I don't, I can special summon Vice Dragon onto the field (lv 5, 2000/2400). His attack and defense points are halved but that won't matter, because I summon Dark Resonator (lv3, 1300/500) from my hand. Now, Vice Dragon, tune with Dark Resonator, only in the hands of the King, can true power be harnessed. Come forth my ultimate beast, Red Dragon Archfiend!"

"Jack!" Mina all but swooned in the audience stands. I looked over in time to see her imitating my 'mock anime girl happiness/gratitude leg-bend', only she was entirely sincere. How did this woman end up controlling the security of a metropolis?

"Jack is in top form today," Rex Goodwin said approvingly. This place really had an excellent sound system.

All was going according to plan, I was prepared for the Jack Atlas at the end of the series, this Jack was hardly going to be a challenge.

"When I have an Lv 8 or higher Synchro Monster, I can special summon this from my hand, come forth, Creation Resonator (Lv3, tuner, 800/600). Now Red Dragon Archfiend, attack!"

"I activate my trap," I waved my hand, "Compulsory Evacuation! This returns one card from the field to the hand. So I return Red Dragon Archfiend to your extra deck." It's great to have cards I was used to again, dueling feels so much easier this time.

Mina gasped.

"Grr," Jack growled, "I lay down three cards and end my turn."

Jack had ended his turn with an empty hand, not usually a good sign.

 **Turn 3, Yuk's Turn; Yuki 4000, Jack 4000**

"My turn then," I drew casually. Looking at my opponent's imposing stance, I stood up straighter, only to look attentive and respectful rather than intimidating, and gave up. "Fine then, I summon, Tour Guide from the Underworld (1000/600) from my hand, when I summon her, I can special summon another lv 3 fiend monster from my deck, and I choose, Dark Resonator."

"How!" Jack protested, "How could you have that card!"

"It's one of the few lv 3 fiend tuners," I shrugged off his outrage, "you can't honestly expect to be the only one using that card. Now, I tune Lv 3 Tour Guide with lv 3 Dark Resonator, to synchro summon, Celestial Wolf Lord, Blue Sirius (lv6, 2400/1500). I activate Raiden's effect and send two cards from my deck to the graveyard." Neither cards sent to the graveyard where Lightsworn monster, my warrior's attack remained unchanged at 1700.

"Now, Raiden, attack Creation Resonator (Lv3, tuner, 800/600)!" I commanded calmly, my warrior sliced the animatronic egg-machine hybrid back into its metallic components. Jack's life points dropped to 3100 as he shielded himself from the blast somehow generated by holograms. I have to look into that one of those days. "Now Wolf Lord, attack Jack directly!" I looked on eagerly.

"Not so fast!" Jack swiped his arm and revealed the trap card,

"I reveal my trap card, Cursed Prison, which allows me to special summon a synchro monster from my extra deck in defense mode, as long as its effects are negated. Come back onto the field, Red Dragon Archfiend (lv8, 3000/2000)!"

My wolf stopped short as a giant dragon rose up from the ground and blocked its path.

"No matter," I shrugged. I _could_ leave his monster on the field for this turn, stuck in defense mode and with no effects. Jack doesn't have higher-level synchro monsters yet, so he can't even use his dragon as synchro material. Red Dragon Archfiend would be entirely useless. But that's not how I duel. "Wolf Lord, destroy that dragon!"

My beast charged again, its claws digging through translucent scales into flesh and bone. I saw the majestic monster twist in pain, heard its agonizing roar as its head was severed from the rest of the body. It bled red. I was thankful holograms cannot yet imitate the sense of smell. Some monsters just appear more realistic than others.

"That's exactly what I thought you'd do!" Jack announced triumphantly, "I activate, Miracle's Wake. This trap allows me to summon one monster destroyed by battle this turn back onto the field. So say hello again to my Red Dragon Archfiend!"

"Go Atlas-sama!" Mina called from the sidelines. It _was_ a good combo, using two trap cards to special summon Red Dragon Archfiend at its full strength on your opponent's turn. I took the chance to sneak a peek at Goodwin, he was looking thoughtfully at Jack's arm. Ahh, Jack still needed train for his tattoo. Alright, as long as I got my cards, I'll play.

"I lay another card face-down, and end my turn." I announced, leaving only two cards in my hand.

 **Turn 4, Jack's Turn; Yuki 4000, Jack 3100**

"My turn!" Jack drew forcefully, "now prepared to be crushed by the King! First, I activate Red Carpet, when I have a dragon type Synchro monster on the field, I can special summon two Resonator monsters from my graveyard. Come back to the field, Dark Resonator (lv3, 1300/500), Creation Resonator (lv3, tuner,800/600) , in attack mode!"

With Red Dragon Archfiend on the field, any monsters that didn't attack would be destroyed at the end of the turn.

"Next, I summon Lancer Archfiend. I tune my Creation Resonator with my Lancer Archfiend (lv4, 1600/1400), to synchro summon, Chaos King Archfiend (2600/2600, lv 7), when he attacks, I can switch the attack and defense powers of all your monsters."

"Two synchro monsters in two turns," I heard Goodwin comment, "Jack's not missing a beat in his duel." I followed his eyes to Jack's arm, still nothing.

"You're the best, Atlas-sama!" Mina jumped around, waving her arms and cheering. I worried for her mini-skirt.

"Hmph." Jack grunted in contentment, "Now you'll know what it's like to face somebody far superior in every way! Chaos King Archfiend, attack Raiden Hand of the Lightsworn, Ultimate Pandemonium!"

I don't know what he was so happy about, he had no cards in his hand, while I had two. He had nothing in the spell-trap zone and only three monsters out on the field, utterly vulnerable, Jack Atlas was about to learn the importance of keeping a reserve.

My LP dropped to 2400, as Raidel only had 1000 def (now attack), against Jack's Archfiend's 2600. His LP stood at 3100.

"Now Red Dragon Archfiend, destroy Celestial Wolf Lord!" Jack ordered, I guess he was prepared to sacrifice his dragon, but I wasn't ready to let my monster go just yet.

"Activate trap, Dimensional Prison, this card banishes the attacking monster." I explained as Jack's gigantic dragon monster was sucked into a dark vortex.

Jack leaned back as though physically struck, and his face contorted in rage and dismay. I struggled to hold back the laughter. He just looked so adorable when defeated. Okay, not yet defeated, but soon.

"I end my turn," Jack admitted reluctantly.

 **Turn 5, Yuki's Turn; Yuki 2400, Jack 3100**

"Then I can summon Evilswarm Zahak (lv4, 1850/850), I should warn you that when he's destroyed, he takes with him one lv5 or above special summoned monster." I also had Celestial Wolf Lord, Blue Sirius (lv 2400/1700) on the field, which can decrease a monster's attack by 2400 when he leaves the field. The point being, either of those monsters would take a high-level synchro monster with them when they leave, allowing me unfettered access to Jack's life points.

I could sacrifice Wolf Lord and destroy his Archfiend, but it's not worth it.

"Celestial Wolf Lord, attack and destroy his Dark Resonator!" I saw Jack gritting his teeth as the dust from the attack settled. My puppy just bit off 1100 of his LP.

"And don't forget," I smirked at the floating voodoo creature holding a tuning fork who stayed on the field despite the attack, pleased at having turned Jack's monster's special effects against him, "Once per turn, Dark Resonator is not destroyed by battle, so I get to attack him again. Evilswarm Zanak, attack!"

I looked down at my hand, the other two cards I held were Draguinty Arma Leyvetan (lv8, 2600/1200), and Herald of Purple Light (lv2, 300/500), not a bad hand, just not quite appropriate for this case, more specifically, not designed for this deck. I thought I'd add enough cards for a Draguinity deck for Galen since I have the chance, it would work reasonably well with his Red Eyes Darkness Metal Dragon.

So I declared the end to my turn. I had Book of Moon (turn one monster into facedown defense position) on the field, it wasn't much, but it'll be enough for this turn.

 **Turn 6, Jack's Turn; Yuki 2100, Jack 1350**

"My move then!" Jack growled. I thought I saw a hint of red light under his sleeves, it was hard to be certain since he put that trench coat back on before our duel. Jack started his turn before I could study Goodwin properly. "I draw! Don't get carried away yet, you can't defeat Jack Atlas that easily. I summon to the field, Chain Resonator (lv1 tuner, 100/100), when this card is summoned and I have a synchro monster on the field, I can special summon one resonator monster from my deck, and I choose, Dark Resonator, in defense mode!"

Interesting choice, Jack's playing a little defensively now that his life points are on thin ice, though I still didn't see how he could get around the effects of both of my monsters.

"Now Chaos King Archfiend (2600/2600), attack Celestial Wolf Lord, Blue Sirius (1500/2400)!" Jack commanded. The activation of Chaos King Archfiend's special ability again switched my monsters' attack and defense to deal more damage, but my Evilswarm Zanak was still too powerful for his resonator to destroy. My armored wolf went down in a heated blast, I was uncertain if I felt the impact or merely imagined it.

My LP dropped to 1300 from 2400.

"I activate my monster's special ability, when he's destroyed and sent to the graveyard, I can decrease your monster's attack by 2400 pts." I pointed to Chaos King Archfiend, its attacked dropped to a measly 200. On his field were three monsters, Chaos King Archfiend and Chain Resonator in attack mode, with 200 and 100 atk respectively, and Dark Resonator in defense mode. He had to have another plan. I was trying to remember special effects for the cards in his graveyard when he spoke again.

"Now, Chain Resonator, tune with level 7 Chaos King Archfiend to synchro summon, Stardust Dragon (lv8, 2500/2000)!" He didn't pronounce a cute little rhyme this time.

"What?" I muttered, too surprised to shout or protest. 'What the actual hell' were my exact thoughts, but being in this world had caused me to instinctively tune out the more negative aspects of my speech.

"Go Jack!" Mina shouted excitedly, obviously oblivious to the source of that monster.

I glanced over to see Goodwin touching his arm thoughtfully, as surprised as I was by Jack's use of Yusei's dragon. Did that sound a little off? I thought it did.

"Are you kidding me?" I finally blurted out the most PG version of my thoughts, "Are you effing kidding me! Stardust Dragon?" I removed most of the expletives for the benefit of Jack and Mina. I wonder if either of them were still underage.

"It's my card now and I'm going to use it however I like." Jack responded defensively. Objectively speaking, it's not a bad choice, Stardust Dragon's special ability neutralizes Evilswarm Zanak's monster destruction effect perfectly.

"It's _not_ your card," I rebuffed, "and I'm sure he hates you for using him in a duel." Jack's actual method of getting the card was worse than immoral and borderlined 1st degree murder. It's the one thing that always gave me reservations about him. In reality, nobody wants to befriend someone who'd do literally anything to get ahead.

"I don't care what _He_ thinks," Jack turned his nose up again, refusing to meet my eyes, "I've moved on from that life now, and there's no way I'm going to let Him get in my way."

He thought I was talking about Yusei when I was actually referring to Stardust, but they both hate him at the moment, so there's no point correcting this misunderstanding.

"Very well," I shrugged, "I shall defeat Stardust Dragon, then you, if you insist."

"Do your worst," Jack scoffed.

"You asked for it." It wasn't hard to defeat a monster with no backup.

 **Turn 7, Yuki's Turn; Yuki 1500, Jack 1350**

As I drew my next card, I heard Stardust Dragon roar, he struggled as though bound by invisible chains. Of course he's bound by invisible chains, he was in a friggin' card doomed to serve whichever teenager got their hands on him. I thought I felt a jolt of electric energy innervate my body when I picked up the next card, and when I looked, it was Black Luster Soldier, Envoy of the Beginning (3000/3000, aka BLS-EoB). That was the trump card in this deck, and could definitely win me the duel this turn. A lucky draw at a critical juncture, I thought cynically. Or rather the first time a magical lizard worked for me instead of against, Stardust's own work, if the Crimson Dragon hadn't been lying to me. It felt cheap, as though I was handed the victory by some mysterious force. Magical or not, I refuse to be the puppet to a giant lizard, even if it belonged to the protagonist of the series.

"I special summon," I decided finally, "Plaguespreader Zombie from my graveyard by placing one card from my hand to the top of my deck." I replaced BLS-EoB to the deck. "Next, I'll summon Cardcar D (lv2), in attack mode. So I can use him to tune Plaguespreader Zombie and synchro summon, Armory Arm (lv4 1800/1200) in attack mode. He can be equipped to a monster, and when the equipped monster destroys another monster, the attack points of the target is subtracted from your life points! Now I equip Armory Arm to my Evilswarm Zanak (now 2850), and use it to attack your, sorry, not yours, Stardust Dragon!"

* * *

Jack stood stunned as Stardust Dragon was blasted into dust, I could swear that dragon looked happy. The effect of Armory Arm activated, the rocket detached from my three-headed dragon and fired directly at Jack, decreasing his LP to 0.

Mina rushed onto the arena, Rex Goodwin followed. Lazar joined the crowd too.

I watched as the group circled Jack, encouraging him and trying to cheer him up. None of them was on my side, yet any of them could keep me in prison until my corpse rotted. On the other hand, I never did rely on Goodwin's word to get back to Satellite.

"Director Goodwin," I said quietly, crossing the duel arena and tapping Goodwin on the arm because I couldn't reach his shoulders, "a word."

His sulking interrupted, Jack looked up (down) and looked at the clown, sending him cowering silently. Though the majority of his resentment was still directed at me, his eyes red with rage and foaming at the mouth, all he was missing was photophobia to be mistaken for a rabies case. Obviously furious not only over his loss, but over my cavalier attitude towards it.

"That's not possible!" He held his head in his hands, "How did you defeat me? I was the King!"

"Oh, Atlas-sama" Mina hovered over the obviously uninjured Jack, "are you okay?"

"Jack," Goodwin followed, "we all encounter setbacks in life, the important thing is to learn from our mistakes and emerge even stronger." While he was spewing this chicken soup for the soul nonsense. I noticed him caressing Jack's right arm, inconspicuously pushing the sleeve back. If I hadn't known what he was doing, I would have called it perverse.

"Yes Jack," I faced the once-King. Nah, who am I kidding, he would never measure up to the _real_ King of Games. "Accept your defeat, you'll get used to it soon enough."

Jack stood up with a fire burning in his eyes, I could practically hear his teeth grinding. If only he was passionate about things that mattered.

"Jack!" Mina exclaimed, holding onto his arm. He impatiently waved her off.

"I lost," his hands were clenched so tightly I could see veins pop out of his pale skin; if it were for his perfectly manicured nails, surely his palms would be bleeding now. "To a bloody nobody!"

'Bloody', +1 point for British Jack over Australian.

Jack brushed past Goodwin, but not before even I saw the unblemished skin on his right arm.

Goodwin grabbed his protégé, "Jack, get a hold of yourself. One duel means nothing, it's your consistency that makes you the king."

I nodded in complete agreement. Plus, if Jack didn't get his mark yet, Goodwin still needs me.

"I'm not the King anymore Goodwin," Jack snubbed, "I was beaten by a mere child!"

I gritted my teeth, not in anger as they expected, but so to bite back the line 'who would've thought even a child could win a children's card game' line.

"So..." I ignored Jack acting like the petulant teenager that he was and looked at Goodwin expectantly, "Zigzix, you said I could have him?"

"Yes, of course," Goodwin waved off the request, "I'll have him sent to the Satellite, you can receive confirmation from your little team once he gets there."

Guess he's not letting me go yet, I don't have the physical prowess to actually escape the control of Domino City, but I did have a plan.

"Rest assured," Goodwin scowled, understanding my silence to mean something entirely different. "You may contact your minions once the deliveries arrive."

"Minions!" I was both offended and flattered, " _employees_. They're my employees, Director Goodwin. Not everybody has lackeys or minions to do their bidding." I shot a glance at Jack pointedly.

Jack remained ignorant of our little banter, and despite Mina's pleas, he strode decidedly towards the exit.

"Atlas-sama!" Mina chased after him, wanting to hold him back but not daring to touch even the tails of the white trench coat.

Seeing an opportunity, and realizing Goodwin certainly wasn't going to let me go if Jack was in a mess, I decided to make the best of the situation.

I nudged Goodwin with a smirk. When he turned his eyes down to me, I pointed at Jack's retreating figure with my chin, then rubbed my thumb and forefingers together.

Goodwin's expression twisted in a very creative manner that I had never seen before.

"Twenty more cards," he said simply, "from Mina's list."

What's wrong with him? You don't buy people off with trading cards.

"Corporate license, tax-exempt status and," I counted off my fingers but failed, "a _few_ pardons for my friends, and now, presumably me."

Goodwin's eyes widened in surprise. I'm really giving his facial muscles a workout today, or maybe he insisted on looking impassive to prevent wrinkles, he certainly didn't have any.

"Fine," He spat out, "now deal with Him."

"We'll iron out the details later," I patted him on the arm, careful to avoid the metal. It's dangerous to reveal how much you know when you already know too much.

"Jack," I called out, the pointy-blonde hair froze, "now you know why I was so surprised to see you with Stardust Dragon. He's not your card, and you'd be surprised what a powerful card like that can do to the order of your deck, and mine."

"What do you mean?" Jack swerved around, his trench coat made a perfect twirl despite wind resistance. I remembered nostalgically to Seto Kaiba's anti-gravity trench coats. "What does Stardust Dragon have to do with this?"

"You _do_ know that your cards can influence your deck and even the outcome of your duel, right?" I asked as though 'sentient being living in paper capable of influencing reality' was the most natural thing in the world.

"Yeah?" Jack acted like it was.

"That's why you can never win with cards that aren't yours," I continued bluffing through my teeth, "not against a worthy opponent anyways."

"Stardust Dragon," Jack picked that card out of his deck, holding it between his fingers "it's the reason I lost?"

"He," I corrected, thus effectively avoiding the question. I would worry about the card, except Goodwin would never let anything happen to it. "Your deck would run better without him."

"So let's duel again!" Jack replied immediately, "I demand a rematch." I was sincerely freaked out by how much he sounded like me when I was asking for another duel with Crow, it's not a good sign when you find yourself similar to Jack Atlas.

"You'll get your chance, Jack," Goodwin interrupted, presumably worried Jack would lose again "The Fortune Cup shall be held next month, Ms. Tono will of course get an invitation. If she wins then, she'll get to duel you in a fair match."

Fair, I hid a condescending sneer, there's nothing 'fair' about kidnapping somebody and forcing them into any kind of conflict. The Fortune Cup was a lot earlier than I expected, but I guess it doesn't affect my long-term plans, seeing as I don't have any long-term plans. Though it did mean I would have to figure out some way to defeat the Dark Signers with Exodia very, very soon.

Jack didn't look pleased with the arrangement, but Rex Goodwin had that look on his face that clearly said there was no room for argument. Fine, he needed to fix his deck anyways, so next time they meet, he could crush that satellite. Jack consented with a curt nod and left with another swirl of his trench coat. Mina quickly followed behind.

"You have no plans to leave here I see," said an obviously amused Goodwin.

Seeing the coast is clear, I nonetheless waited till all three were out of sight before I spoke again, ignoring his previous comment.

"Director Goodwin," I looked straight ahead, talking quietly, "the man in the Shadows sends his regards to the Light."

"Who are you speaking of?" Goodwin asked quickly. When I walked towards the exit, he followed.

"Your brother," I said flatly, "I'm here to see what progress you've made with the Signers. Looks like Jack Atlas still has a long way to go, are the others stronger?"

"How did you learn of this?" Goodwin demanded, "Who told you?"

"The person who sent me." I answered matter-of-factly, "Now I just need an answer, will everything be ready then?"

"So that's why you came here without resistance," Goodwin mused. Excellent, he's filling in the blanks for me. That's what happens with the cunning types, they think too much. "It's Kalin Kessler, isn't it?" He didn't mean it as a question _,_ so I didn't answer.

 _"I would_ still like to keep my deck," I said instead, prompting surprised laughter from the man who dominated this city. The request was made solely to quell his suspicions for the time being, though I really did need a decent (ish) deck.

"Very well," Goodwin nodded, "Mina will arrange for your transport back to the Satellite." Perfect. I was reasonably sure if he thought I was sent by Roman, he'd let me go, even if he did still have his doubts. Not because Roman had a particularly strong hold on him, rather because he didn't want his big brother to realize he was out of control. I was too insignificant to the younger Goodwin be worth the risk. There's no evidence that my presence played a significant role in Yusei's summoning of the Crimson Dragon, and more importantly, he thinks he could pick me up again at any time if he changed his mind.

"I appreciate it." I nodded graciously, "and as for the Signers?"

"Let me brother know, all will be done in due time," Rex Goodwin assured me.

"As you wish," I nodded my goodbyes.

"You _will_ come for the Fortune Cup?" Rex Goodwin asked offhandedly.

"Wouldn't miss it for the world," I assured him, looking equally nonchalant, like accepting a dinner invitation.

"I look forward to seeing you on stage," Goodwin smiled meaningfully before making his exit. I wonder what he meant.

I wasted no time getting hold of Jack's blue-haired assistant. Right after I comforted the distraught weeping Mina so she was restored to a functional state. Zigzix and I were escorted back to the Satellite by the future chief of police herself. I made a mental note to investigate how she got (will get?) the job.

* * *

 **A/N:** Fighting Black Rose, difficulty: 5 stars, equipment: explosives, gasoline, duel runner

Fighting Jack Atlas: difficulty: 1 star, equipment: deck of cards (provided by Jack Atlas), duel disk (provided by Rex Goodwin)

Yuki got off easy, wouldn't you say?

Finally, the Fortune Cup arc!


	21. Neglected Superpowers

**Disclaimer:** I do not own YGO 5Ds

* * *

"Yuki! I can't believe you're back!" Though Kalin had never been exactly laconic since I met him (crazy/unhinged, yes; aloof, not quite), I had never seen such a display of affection from him as he drew me in for a rib-crushing hug. Hearing the slight tremble in his voice, I stayed in place despite the pain and gently patted him around the waist.

I heard Zigzix's stumbling footsteps as Mina pushed him off the car, and then the all-terrain vehicle behind me zoom off before I could say goodbye. I don't blame her, Mina was no doubt eager to get away from this toxic smell. Wait, where did the toxic smell come from?

Mina's car being so much more comfortable than the table on which I slept last night, I dozed off 10 minutes into the ride. By the time our car stopped, we were already surrounded by this noxious stench.

Kalin bent down to make sure I was alright, that's when I saw it.

"Guys," I stared speechless at the gaping hole where my room used to be. "Guys?"

Kalin released me and coughed, looking uncomfortable for once. Nervin looked at Greiger, Greiger looked at Nervin, both looking embarrassed and oblivious. Everybody else seemed to have gained a sudden interest in the composition of the dirt in our front yard. You see, it used to be paved (covered with cobblestones during Cyril's artistic phase), now there's only dirt. My eyes rested briefly on Chaos, in a tattered form-fitting black t-shirt and clear whip marks on the exposed skin, I would love to learn more about that later.

"Where did my room go?"

They certainly all _looked_ guilty, but I can't even imagine how any of this could have happened.

"And why does the entire place smell like gasoline?" Does the Satellite even have gasoline anymore?

This is not the first impression I wanted to make on our new head of science, I'm trying to keep him here, not to convince him minor armed conflicts occur here on a regular basis.

"Ahem. Well team, may I present to you Dr. Zigzix, the leading expert in thermoastro physics and the founder of EnerD!" Clap! I tried my best to send the message with my eyes. They eventually got it and a slow applause started from this post-hurricane scene.

"He'll be joining us, for the time being," I added with a broad smile, can't let Zigzix think he's trapped here forever,

"How about I take you on a tour," Nervin read the situation correctly for once and firmly steered Zigzix away, chatting all the while, leaving me to sort out… whatever this mess is, "I'm a huge fan of your work professor, your paper on the sequestration of irradiated photons using Yusei particles..."

Vincent nudged Greiger in their direction, the brunet gratefully followed, feeling too out of place to concern himself with, _whatever_ it was that happened here. After all, it was just a Satellite gang fight, why would the Director of Domino city be interested?

"So..." I twirled around prettily (I thought) thanks to the knee-length white dress Mina got me while I was in Domino City. It went well with the radioactive green hair and eyes combo. Yes, even though I defeated her beloved Jack, Mina was sweet enough not to hold it against me and take pity on me for the truly disastrous garments I adorned. It's not my fault, limited water supply, remember?

I was not feeling _remotely_ pretty. The only thing that seemed intact was the frame of the main house, half the extension wing was gone, as was our front door and all windows, like a demolishing job had been canceled halfway. In fact, every building in a 100 meter radius was either half-demolished, charred or both. The entire area smelt so heavily of gasoline I was worried it might spontaneously combust, and what roads we managed to lay has been utterly restructured into common soil.

"I was gone for a day," I tried my best not to shriek, "Less than a day! I left this morning! What could have possibly happened?"Was this a normal thing in the Satellite that I just never saw yet?

"The Black Rose." Vincent replied significantly as though it should mean something, and it did.

I was vaguely aware of Akiza's powers, which she used to do some very interesting things to Yusei during the anime, and also suggest an extremely fascinating relationship between the two. Usually, the girl isn't the one with the tentacles…

I didn't consider the full destructive potential of her powers outside of the duel arena, but now that I see it…

"This is _so_ cool!" I had a completely different opinion of the incident. "So she did all of this all by herself? Did she summon monsters or use spells? How do _I_ get powers like that! 'Cause there're-"

"That's all you have to say?" Felice cut me off, gesturing to our decimated surroundings, "about all of this? That it was 'cool'?"

"But this is superpowers!" I protested loudly, my mind entirely occupied by superheroes and real duel monsters for the time being, "She has _actual_ super powers!"

"She also tried to kill us," Galen informed me flatly, "and almost did."

"Oh," That took a bit of wind out of my sails, probably shouldn't be this excited, but I wasn't about to give up just yet. "Why did she come here anyways?"

"Who knows why that crazy witch does anything?" Cyril said, he didn't say witch.

I had at least part of the answer, Akiza is still under Sayer's control and is unlikely to deal out this kind of damage without at least a prompt from him. Why Sayer would want something like this, I didn't know. He doesn't have enough screen time for me to assess his motives.

"Go back inside," Chaos' hand on my shoulders felt a little stronger than necessary, "you're probably tired from the day. We'll clean up out here."

"Aren't we going to talk about this?" I asked blankly, "somebody just blew up half the house and you want to clean up and move on?"

"The Black Rose is like a natural disaster," Vincent shrugged, obviously agreeing with Chaos, "There's nothing we can do about it so there's nothing to talk about." He looked at my incredulous expression and asked exasperatedly, "Do you have a better idea?"

"Well, there must be some recourse," I dragged at least part of my IQ from superhero land back to this reality, "I mean, doesn't the Sector take care of these things? Doesn't Domino?"

"Why would they?" Cyril asked bitterly, "no government property was damaged, why would they care what happens to a few satellites?" Judging from Domino City's treatment of the Satellite as a whole, his response seemed to make sense. Until you consider the bigger picture.

"It's not about the damage!" I protested, "This is some comic book stuff going on here! Magic! And superpowers have just been definitively confirmed! Doesn't anybody care about that? Is this a new species? Is this a new direction of evolution for the human race? Is this engineered by new technological advances? I mean, it's…" I sputtered for a lack of words, "It's magic!"

Even if Rex Goodwin didn't care, shouldn't the human race as a whole be more concerned with duel monster cards materialized by another member of their own species? Why isn't Akiza locked up in a lab that only wants to drain her blood and take her ova? I had little doubt regarding her fate had she been in my previous reality.

"The Satellite is never short on magic," Kalin reminded me. True, but magic wielded independently is completely different from powers granted by members of another species. This is a representation of the strength and potential of the human race!

"Let the big wigs worry about that," Chaos pushed me inside, "How about you guys go inside too, Galen and I will clean up out here."

"Thanks!" Cyril was the first to go back in. There's also a ton of work to do inside the house, but it'll be a walk in the park compared with cleaning up the outside. Vincent looked a little concerned but said nothing more as he followed, taking Felice with him.

Still hung up about the confirmation of magical powers, I mentally downgraded everybody else's IQ by 12 points for not agreeing with me on the importance of Akiza's demonstration of superpowers.

Galen struggled against Chaos' hands, "Let me go! She has a right to know!"

"We need to talk about it first," Chaos pleaded threateningly, somehow. "Yuki…" He turned towards me, his intent obvious.

"Alright, I'll get out of your way," Whatever secret they had, I trusted them enough at least to let them decide amongst themselves first. "Oh, before I go," I fished the Black Luster Soldier from my new deck, curtesy of Jack Atlas, "I think this is yours." Being an ultra-rare card even in my reality, Domino didn't have another copy, so the card I received is the one Chaos lost when he was arrested. I know because Chaos marked it with his own blood with he was 12. "I don't have the rest of your deck yet, but I think we'll work something out."

Staring at the card in my hand for a full three seconds, Chaos picked it up and let out a long sigh.

"Thanks Kessler," He turned towards Kalin and nodded dismissively. Kalin gave him a hard look.

"It's fine, Kalin," I assured him, "Why don't you go upstairs and get some sleep." I did not forget that Crow might still be stopping by tonight. The youngest ex-Enforcer did not yet know about Kaln's presence, and I'd like to keep it that way.

"I need to check with the Dark Signers," Kalin turned towards his motorcycle, "I should be back soon."

"Well?" I prompted after Kalin left, neither of them spoke, "it's just the three of us, so if you want to say something, you might as well do it now."

"Yuki," Galen finally stepped up, looking ashamed and apologetic. "A letter came for you two days ago."

"Okay…"If it came two days ago, why didn't he give it to me before I left? And who still send letters nowadays? Second thought, that's not exactly true. Letters were becoming obsolete in my reality, but it's actually a big deal in the Satellite. There's no postal system, so any correspondence by paper must be delivered by a specialized carrier, working in the grey areas of the law. It's usually reserved only when the information communicated required a higher security level than emails. "From Industrial Illusions."

Well that's a name I never thought I'd hear again.

"Pegasus Industrial Illusions?"

Galen rolled his eyes and pointedly ignored the question, "Anyways, I thought you should know about it, before something like this happened again."

"We read the letter," Chaos added contentiously.

"There's still an Industrial Illusions?" I still can't get over that. I mean it made sense, if Kaiba's company lasted this long, there's no reason Pegasus' wouldn't, keeping in mind that Industrial Illusions was clearly the larger of the two. I do wonder who took over Industrial Illusions after Pegasus died, the duel monster creator certainly didn't look like he would father an heir.

"Pegasus moved his company to North America after Kaiba built Duel Academy," Chaos explained when he realized I wasn't going to concentrate on the conversation until I was finished with the gossip, "but they still have significant stakes in Japan. They're interested in the water generators Nervin produced and they're extending you an offer."

"What is it?" I think I'd be more interested if Pegasus was still there, but as it is, I had little interest left in the company that created Duel Monsters.

"These offers are all the same," Galen said, "if you sell them the patent, they'll move the company to Tokyo."

"So what do you guys think?" I asked carefully, trying to gauge the opinions of the two people before me. It wasn't hard to deduce they had hid this letter from the rest of the gang, to my immense relief. I was tasked by that lizard with winning this battle of light and darkness (whatever that means), which meant I was stuck here. If the Crimson Dragon loses, or Rex Goodwin wins, going to Tokyo wouldn't exactly escape the destruction of the world. But if everybody insisted on leaving the Satellite, our little group would fall apart faster than I could say 'end of the world'. Then it would be even harder to defeat the Dark Signers, I presume, since I didn't have a plan yet.

"I think it's a good opportunity," Galen smiled a little sadly, "you should take it. Tokyo has a lot more to offer than the Satellite."

Chaos looked like wanted to say something, but seeing the card in his hand, stopped half way.

"I don't think it's a good idea to relocate at this point in our development," I bluffed confidently, "We already set up a solid foundation here, production costs have stabilized, and there's a very low overhead." I'm not entirely sure what I said, but it sounded convincing, so I didn't understand the weird looks I was getting.

"There's no relocation," Chaos said drily, "They're hiring _you,_ not the rest of us. You don't honestly think the corporate suits would bring a hundred people out of the Satellite for a single patent? When you get there, they'll set up everything from scratch, and you'll never have to decide between toothpaste and bedsheets again." (I chose toothpaste by the way, I'm sleeping on a table, why would I need bedsheets?)

"And you thought I'd leave you guys here?" I was honestly a little hurt, after going to face Goodwin solo, they still think I'd leave?

"You don't belong here, Yuki-sama" Chaos sighed, placing his hand over my head. I growled, but since he was still injured, I resigned to not struggling, "It was obvious from the very start that you don't belong here." Was it the struggle to eat food that give me away? "Your place is in the City, driving the fastest cars and fighting the hardest duels. You'd do very well there." He paused, I felt his hand stroking my hair with a little more force than was comfortable, "But I'm glad that you've decided to stay, otherwise I may be forced to change your mind. The Satellite needs you Yuki, more than Tokyo ever will. And we can't stand losing hope again."

As much as I liked Chaos, sometimes (frequently) he gets really creepy.

"Anyways, one thing at a time," I tried to sound a little more light-hearted, "Black Rose, superpowers, remember?"

"Attacks like that are pretty common here, but getting a chance to leave is an once-in-a-lifetime opportunity." Galen reminded me solemnly, "You may not ever get a chance like this again."

"Don't forget to repave the lawn," I said over my shoulders, ignoring his comment, "I think Nervin can show you how to mix some cement."

* * *

Akiza limped through the dark alleys she would barely look at a couple of hours ago. When her summoned monsters are destroyed, especially outside the duel arena, a corresponding portion of her energy is drained. So now, the most powerful duelist in Arcadia barely had enough energy left to summon Copy Plant (lv1, tuner, 0/0). She wasn't an experienced fighter, but she was smart enough to realize that she should keep a reserve when she's alone in the Satellite at dusk.

Using a piece of wood as a walking stick, the redhead gritted her teeth and hobbled cautiously towards the pier.

"Hey, are you okay?" She looked up at hearing the energy and optimism she never expected in the Satellite, to a crab-haired duelist on a motorcycle. There was no malice or lust in his blue eyes, not even the calculating look she often saw in Sayer, this teen was, or at least looked, genuinely concerned for her wellbeing. "I'm Yusei," he offered when she didn't say anything, "Do you need a ride? It's not safe for you to walk alone like this."

Yusei rarely rode his duel runner in broad daylight, but he made an exception when he saw the thick smoke rising from the Magician's house. He had met Crow half-way and helped settle Crow's students down. When he had finished, the fire had already dead down. Yusei had planned to check on the place just in case when he met the injured redhead.

"Thanks," Akiza nodded, appearing distant even as Yusei helped her on his bike "I need to get to the pier. I'll show you the way." And if he tried anything, Akiza assured herself, it wouldn't be difficult to get rid of him from the back.

"Hold on tight," Yusei cautioned as he sped off and felt Akiza grab the back of his jacket.

* * *

"Mr. Atlas," Lazar walked quickly so as to not be left behind as Jack strode away from the arena where he had just won another duel under the watchful eyes of his adoring fans, "You mentioned that you wanted to see me?"

"Yes," Despite his recent victory, Jack's lips were pursed into a thin line with the memory of his defeat, "Go ahead and send the chip into the Satellite, it's time to wrap things up with Yusei."

"But, are you sure?" Lazar asked carefully. More specifically, Lazar wasn't sure what Goodwin thought, he hadn't had time to confirm the original plans with the Director since Jack's defeat.

"Yes I'm sure!" Jack brushed Lazar aside forcefully, "I need to deal with the past before I can move on to my future!"

* * *

Thanks to Vincent's attempt to keep him away from their affairs, Greiger had managed to slip away undetected this time. He shredded Goodwin's message and tossed the scraps into the river. He was to continue his surveillance of Yuki Tono, but return in two weeks time, 5 days before the Fortune Cup, to prepare for the event. In the meantime, keep an eye on anything that would ensure or interfere with Yuki's attendance of the event.

Greiger wasn't comfortable with the whole spying business, but it's for the best, and it's only on somebody who'd kidnapped kids, he reminded himself.

* * *

 **A/N:** I was truly _awed_ by how little everybody cared about Akiza's superpowers. I mean, her powers strongly suggest that _magic was real_ , _duel monsters were real_ and _humans are able to harness such forces independently_ without the assistance of some vague holier-than-thou magical creature. Imagine if X-men were suddenly confirmed, and we discover another world filled with Transformers ready to obey human command. You'd think it'd be a bigger deal.

 **A/N 2:** It's harder for me to write scenes involving my main character... Any scene with canon characters or even other OCs come to me pretty easily, but I have trouble writing Yuki... This might be a problem.

 **A/N 3:** I should probably manage my chapter lengths better. One of these days, I will go back and fix things, one of these days.


	22. A Tendency Toward Criminal Activities

**Disclaimer** : I do not own YGO 5ds.

 **A/N:** I changed a couple of details this chapter, previous chapters have been adjusted to match this adjustment. I'm hoping nobody would notice.

* * *

"We need a name," Cyril informed me seriously . "We're releasing the newest line of mp3s, and this not having a logo thing is getting ridiculous."

Apparently he thought this was as important as cleaning up the half-destroyed house where we would sleep tonight. I can't say I disagree. Brand name recognition is important.

"Um," I had already spent many hours searching in vain for a decent team name. "what about the Underground Alliance." This name first came to me when I met Nervin, since I lived underground, and he lived next to a subway, which is also called the underground, I thought it would be a cute pun.

"I thought you said you ran this company by Goodwin and it's legal," Vincent condemned my idea without a second thought.

"Then you guys think something up!" I grumbled. I'm much better at finding problems with ideas than coming up with them.

"This isn't hard you know." Vincent said, "Let's see, a lot of people name their group after their deck, what deck do you use?"

"I haven't decided on one yet," I admitted, "I don't want to make that kind of commitment." I mean, now that monsters are real, I'd want to meet them, maybe grab a drink, watch a movie (once I build movie theatres), discuss life and career goals, expectations, that sort of thing before I settle down.

"Use a spellcaster deck," Vincent suggested, "then we can call ourselves the Elemental Sorcerers, and adjust our decks so our decks each have a different attributes."

Then at least one person was going to lose every duel, I mean, how are you supposed to make a fire-spellcaster deck? Plus, even not counting Kalin and Crow, there was already 7 of us.

"That's the single dumbest thing I've ever-," I stopped myself, remembering back to numerous suggestions I had received involving sweatshops, saving the world and taking over the world, "second thought, I take that back, that doesn't make the top ten dumbest things I've heard this week, but it's still a dumb idea. So no. Next!"

"I thought Team Satisfaction sounded really cool, we should come up with something like that." Felice suggested.

"Sure... But maybe a little less, um, prostitution-y..."

"Since we're going to transform the Satellite, why not call ourselves the Transformers?" Cyril looked very satisfied with this idea.

"Copyright infringement."

"What?"

"Just take my answer and don't question it."

"Our team is aiming for the stars, right? So we should call ourselves Team Rocket!" Cyril said without a trace of irony.

"That's not a good idea, trust me."

"We're trying to fix up the Satellite, so it's like treating it, right? What if we called ourselves The Doctor?" the white-haired teen remained unfazed.

"Cyril… you really need to stop talking."

"Since we're hoping to defeat Fate, we can be the Conquers of the Divine." Chaos surprised me with the idea, I really expected better from him.

"That just sounds like we're planning on doing some very bad things to Divine, keep thinking."

"The Seven Angels of Destiny? Or better yet, since we're getting back what's ours, The Karma Seven." Chaos tried again.

"We're not limiting our team to seven people, you're already excluding Kalin and Crow, and it sounds like a bad band name."

"Oracles of Destruction? Or Oracles of Creation." Vincent helped.

"Oracle doesn't feel right…" I do 'predict' the future, but 'now' the word 'Oracle' refers primarily to the database management firm.

"There's gotta be some name you like," Galen rolled his large brown eyes, "The Duelists of Destiny?"

"Too generic."

"The Elites?"

"Boring."

"Riders of the Revolution?"

"It's a company name, we're trying _not_ to get arrested."

"The Guardians?"

"Not a newspaper."

"Now you're just being difficult," Felice said a little annoyed, "let's see, Underworld Riders, Justice Riders, Forgotten Riders."

"I don't ride duel runners. Oh and from now on, if you want to duel on a runner, make sure it has at least three wheels. Preferably four. With a seat belt. Maybe with something to block out the rain, and an exterior to protect the rider." Under her glare, I cowered and admitted the truth, "Okay, so I really think you should at least drive a monster truck when you play cards, that way at least you wouldn't be _as_ hurt in an accident."

"Rebels of Light?" Galen ignored my comments and continued.

"Once again, not trying to get arrested or start a band."

"The Twilight Equinox? Treading between good and evil, darkness and light. Sounds pretty cool." Vincent give it another try.

"I'd like to come more than twice a year." I can't help the associations my mind makes.

"The Crusaders sound cool. We're on a Crusade to defend a just cause and right the wrongs of this world!" Galen said.

"While I like your sentiment, that's exactly what the actual Crusaders thought and that was the exact opposite of what they were actually doing. Plus things didn't end too well for them. So I'm still going to say no."

"I give up," Cyril rolled his eyes. "Give me a name by tomorrow morning so I can slap the logos on. I have too much real work to deal with this."

"This shouldn't be this hard!" I exclaimed in exasperation, "People have named multibillion dollar companies after fruit and still made it work." I grabbed at the first idea that came to me, "The Zephyrs then."

"Why?" Vincent asked skeptically

"I like the Z symbol," I thought for a bit and decided that was probably the best name I could come up with, "and this world does need a breath of fresh air." Plus, if a company named Micro-Soft (!) can reign the computer industry for decades, and another named Apple can succeed it, names are probably irrelevant in the grand scheme of things.

"So just a 'Z' for the logo then?," Cyril shrugged, "I like it, it's cheaper."

* * *

"We're here," Yusei announced as he came to a stop, tilting his bike to allow his passenger to get off.

Akiza stared at the familiar dock, everything looked exactly the same as any of her other return trips, except the ship that was supposed to pick her up was nowhere to be found. The discovery wasn't completely unexpected or even a surprise, but she was disappointed nonetheless. Thanks to her injuries and hobbling around in the Satellite, she was over two hours late to the designated meeting spot, so naturally the ship had left. But Sayer didn't even bother leaving a contingency plan, get somebody to look for her or even wait here to see if she'd show up. Then again, Sayer never was the type to go out of his way to take care of her. Sometimes she wondered how long it would be before Sayer knows, if she had died on one of her missions, it's not something she liked to think about, but the shadows of doubt encroached on her thoughts constantly.

"Are you okay?" Yusei asked when the red-haired girl behind him didn't move.

"No." Akiza replied, rage and misery welling up at the prospect of once again being abandoned and alone, this time in the Satellite, "I'm not." She could feel the reins on her power beginning to slip, and rubble began to hover dangerous in the air in response to her emotions.

Yusei thought he understood, this girl was obviously waiting for somebody or something that didn't show up, probably something that would help her get back to Domino City. Dirty as they were, even the clothes on her back screamed Neo Domino. There's no way this girl came from the Satellite.

"You're welcome to stay with me if you like," Yusei offered candidly. From any other person, the proposal might have had an unavoidable lewd undertone, but there was nothing of the kind in the ex-Enforcer's words. Akiza blushed nonetheless, it's been a while since somebody offered to help her in a time of need, Sayer had been trying to instill into her that she needed nobody but him, except when she needed somebody, he was never anywhere to be found.

"With us I mean," Yusei added, a little flustered, "until you find somewhere else."

Yusei looked back alarmed as he heard the clatter behind him, finding only debris typical of the Satellite on the dirt roads.

"I think I'd rather be alone," Akiza said coldly. Not that she didn't appreciate the offer, this way of speaking had become second nature to her, "I will need a place close by the pier." She can't be too careful in the Satellite. Plus, if this man learned of her powers, he would probably run like the rest of them, she reminded herself as her opinion of this Yusei character cooled again.

"Do you know anywhere you'd like to go?" Yusei asked, he didn't think she did, the frozen expression on her face told him as much. "I can show you some places around here where you're less likely to be found," he offered, "and you can pick one you like." The implication being, he wouldn't know where she was staying either.

"That would be fine," Akiza didn't understand what Yusei was hinting at, though she vaguely felt it was to her advantage. Maybe she should give him a chance? No, she berated herself. There's no point, none of them can understand what you're going through. He'll just be another person terrified of what they can't understand, or trying to use her powers for his own gain. She can't trust anybody.

"I know a couple of places that lets you see the pier from the window," Yusei commented. For some reason, he found himself talking a lot more than usual. Exhausted from the day's activities, Akiza nodded off to the reassuring voice. She didn't notice herself leaning into the solid shoulders in front of her, until her breath touch his neck. She jumped, he almost drove the duel runner into a wall. It must be the spring weather.

* * *

"That took you a while," Demak commented as Kalin entered the Dark Signers' underground lair, where weather was clearly irrelevant.

"I couldn't find anything," Kalin replied by way of an explanation, "nothing in the Satellite should be able to affect the Underworld King."

"Not even the Crimson Dragon?" Demak asked ominously.

"That dragon was summoned in Yusei Fudo's duel," Kalin said what he honestly thought was the truth, only neglecting Yuki's involvement, directing his answer at Roman "and since you didn't want me to kill him yet, I couldn't approach him. I only have so much self-control."

Roman knew Demak was only leading Kalin with the series of questions so the youngest Dark Signer could explain his absence, so Roman wouldn't get suspicious of Kalin's whereabouts. He also knew the other two were at least a little scared of him and had secretly dubbed him the craziest of their group, a title that he held with good humor and an inexplicable tinge of pride.

But he didn't suspect Kalin, why would he? What was left in the Satellite that could sway Kalin Kessler from the Shadows? Not that Demak's concerns were entirely baseless. As the Ruler of the Underworld's powers grew, Roman could feel his sanity slipping, as the Darkness took over his mind and soul.

"Give it a rest Roman," Kalin drawled, "the entire situation is beyond mortal control. We'll do what we can, and let things turn out as they will." It wasn't what Kalin believed, but he knew the sentiment would resonate with Roman.

Roman nodded, as much as he disliked the idea, he couldn't deny the truth in Kalin's words.

"Very well. Soon our labors would come to fruition, for better or for worse. The Fortune Cup will be over in three weeks," the older Goodwin announced to his most trusted allies, "After which the Signers would be identified, and our battle will begin."

Kalin concurred mindlessly. Roman had gone into some detail regarding their battle with the Light, yet what would happen after remains a mystery. Kalin still wasn't entirely sure what the actual victory of the Shadows, or indeed victory of the Light would entail, but he should probably try to get that little group out of the Satellite before then. The hundreds of teenagers they just hired though, that might be a problem.

* * *

The morning is (supposedly) the best time to get things done. Kalin was still at the Dark Signer's, and Crow is teaching at our 'school', so our hideout is once again magic free, giving us mortals time to deal with a very non-magical problem.

"Alright, what've we got?" Taking a deep breath, I sat down at the table, ready to tackle the hardest battle I have yet to face, finances. Made worse because of the damage Akiza dealt and the costs to repair said damages. Vincent was right about one thing, Akiza did about as much damage as a small natural disaster.

"Let's start with the reconstruction," I decided.

"We have enough manpower…" Galen started hesitantly. We had enough people because we hired too many, without the concurrent upgrade to our raw (recycled) materials, equipment or manufacturing machinery, leading to around 150 kids with nothing to do. That led to a slew of its own problems, but they'd probably rioted if we tried to fire them now. Well, at least this renovation project would keep them busy.

"We'll have to crank up sales then," Cyril continued the thought, "we have production under control at HQ, but if the sales team doesn't pick up the slack, you can forget construction, we'll all be starving pretty soon."

Did I mention that I regret hiring hundreds of people without adequate planning? Even feeding them is becoming a serious issue.

"We're doing the best we can!" Felice defended her efforts.

"Our ad campaigns haven't reached their desired effect," Vincent added, "don't worry, we'll tweak it a little and send it out again."

"I'm afraid I have some bad news in that regard," Nervin grumbled, sounding dejected, "Neo Domino is getting a lot stricter on shipments from the Satellite. We knew this was coming but it's been a lot faster than we expected, our black market has been shrinking." I wondered if punching Lazar had an effect on that at all as Nervin continued, "Even if it hadn't, the black market wouldn't be large enough to accommodate our current volume of productions or generate the revenues we need to stay afloat."

I nodded calmly, it's a little annoying but not all that unexpected. Neo Dominos didn't allow a single person from the Satellite to move into its perimeters in almost two decades, there's no reason to suspect consumer goods would be any different. There's no legal avenue for Satellite-produced goods to be shipped or sold at Domino.

"We shouldn't give up hope on black markets just yet" Galen jumped in enthusiastically, "This is the Satellite, black market is what we do. We'll run from the Sector like we've always done."

"It's not feasible in the long run," I rejected the idea. With Rex Goodwin as its leader, Neo Domino wouldn't hesitate to lock us up for life and seize every cent we made if we were caught. And it's hard not to get caught with hyper-advanced surveillance systems. "It's too risky, nearly impossible at higher production levels." Not being the ever-optimistic protagonist, I didn't think 'staying hopeful' would save our asses.

"Yuki's right," Vincent agreed, "if we keep up like this, we're all just one surveillance video away from moving to the Facilities for good."

"But restricting sales to customers within the Satellite severely limits our potential client base. Our production volume has already exceeded sustainable sales fig-" Nervin frowned, saying the lines that he had obviously rehearsed in his head.

"So what do you wanna do, four-eyes?" Vincent turned away quickly, his red pony tail slapping Nervin across the face. So Nervin grabbed the offending hair and pulled. Vincent responded by taking Nervin's glasses and holding it above his head, watching the shorter man trying to grab it in vain.

And these are the people I work with.

"Ahem," I coughed emphatically, hiding my desire to join in. Somebody had to act the adult, and I was apparently the best candidate among very sparse pickings. "We can't sell to Neo Domino, but there's still the rest of Japan and the rest of the world."

I saw their eyes widen in surprise. Of course, when you've been confined to one corner of a city for all your adult life, when your one dream is to move to the other half of that same city (I still maintain the Satellite is part of Domino City), it's easy to lose perspective of the bigger picture. Remember in the Z-one arc, when Z-one wanted to destroy Domino City (only the city mind you, not even any of its residents), to prevent a likely future destruction of the entire goddamned world? And Yusei fought him tooth and nail, because our protagonist didn't want 'the world' to be destroyed? That's true as far as Yusei knew, Domino was all he knew, it _was_ his world. But it sure as hell wasn't mine.

"We can't," Nervin protested instinctively, "the Satellite is completely isolated from the rest of the country when it broke off from Domino City." I saw nods all across the room, that's the story they had been taught, and they never looked further.

"Isolated with water," I responded, chuckling "in case you forgot, we live conveniently next to a river on one side and the ocean on three." Thanks to Zero Reverse that is. Sure, constructing ships may be even more challenging than duel runners for a variety of reasons, but transportation from Satellite to the rest of Japan remains unhindered due to federal restrictions on local governments controlling economic activities where one party was outside of their jurisdiction.

"It wouldn't be difficult to steal the boats," Vincent said thoughtfully, twirling his ponytail with his finger, "but I doubt we could get away with it. With all the GPS and surveillance, Domino would catch on pretty quick. What?" He said in response to the look I gave him, "it's not like we can afford one."

"If we blackmail Domino companies operating in the Satellite, we might be able to use one for free," Cyril added, sounding like he was the voice of reason.

That's the first thing they think of? Really? Sure gives me insight into their lifestyle. Even Felice didn't protest the suggestion.

"Maybe we can rent one instead," I offered weakly, refusing to be led astray on this runaway train of thought.

"We don't have enough collateral." Galen shot me down without a second thought, "I guess robbery is out of the question?"

"Too obvious," I agreed, somehow finding myself drawn into the conversation, "we can't afford to get caught. Lazar's just looking for an excuse to shut up down."

"If we blow up a boat just right," Felice rubbed her chin, "I think we might be able to buy it at a discount from the scrapyard, then do the repairs ourselvse."

"I'll take the rap for it," Galen offered cheerfully.

"Don't be ridiculous," Chaos ruffled his hair, "You're just a kid, I'll go. I know the Facilities pretty well by now."

"The degree of damage, then, is critical to our success," Nervin brought us back on topic, "we need somebody familiar with the system, so we deal the minimum damage to the ship while making sure it still ends up discarded."

Wait, no, that wasn't the topic. Maybe I should try hanging out with a more law-abiding crowd, I thought not for the first or last time.

"First, we will approach some shipping companies," I deadpanned, dragging our discussion away from criminal activities, "to inquire about their rates and availabilities. We'll keep an eye on scrapyards, but will _not_ add to their collection."

Vincent had the guts to look disappointed.

"But before all that, we need to defeat Ara." Felice said matter-of-factly.

"Right!" Galen concurred enthusiastically, "and I know you can do it!"

"Wait, who's Ara?" It's always annoying when they discuss things I didn't know like I should know them.

"She's the leader of the Adaros, you know, the Mermail gang." Galen clarified for my benefit, "she uses a Mermail deck, they say she's a vengeful water spirit coming to exact revenge on all those who have wronged her in a past life."

"More reliable rumors say she's part of Arcadia," Chaos added, "those rumors are probably right."

Where do these gangs pop up from? I grumbled mentally, but I guess better an illegal Satellite organization than the Domino City government. Even if she _is_ using a Mermail deck, which remains very powerful despite the lack of XYZ extra-deck monsters and XYZ summoning.

"The Adaros have monopolized the waterways around Satellite for a couple of years now," Nervin continued, focusing on facts rather than hearsay, " If we want access to the river or the sea, we're going to have to win that territory from them first."

"Easier said then done," Cyril rained on our parade, "That port brings in at least six figures each year for Arcadia, that's why they have Ara defending it. She hasn't lost a duel in the past five years.

"If we do take their territory though," Galen's large brown eyes brightened hopefully, "can't we take their boats too?" He looked absolutely adorable, if only he wasn't this excited over committing a felony.

Robbery should probably not be encouraged, though I admit I also find the idea very tempting.

"We _could_ seize their assets," Vincent admitted begrudgingly, "but Arcadia would come at us with a vengeance. And unlike Sector Security, they're good at what they do."

"It's too risky," Cyril agreed, "Arcadia has reaches all over the country and can attack our HQ at any time."

"But it's the fastest way," Chaos argued. "We'll be clashing with them over territory anyways, it'll make no difference what else we take."

His sense of morality still needs a little work, but I do see his point.

Hm... I think Divine was arrested at the end of the Dark Signer arc. How long after the Fortune Cups did the Dark Signer arc end? I can't remember, but it was in days or weeks, definitely less than a month. So that's a total of less than two months away.

The details of each event might change, of course, I don't think I changed anything significant so far, but I can't predict the results of each ripple I caused. The big picture, however, remains the same. If Divine wanted to take over the world (apparently a legitimate goal in this dimension), Arcadia would focus its efforts on increasing Akiza's exposure and popularity until the Fortune Cup, and Divine would fight for control over Akiza with Yusei after that, I doubt financial matters would be on the forefront of his mind.

Unlike those of us stuck in the Satellite, Divine didn't need to worry about food.

"We'll be fine," I said with finality. "Arcadia wouldn't be a threat." There's a risk of course, but it's a risk worth taking. More specifically, it would be much safer and realistic than trying to obtain a boat by any of the methods my colleagues have thus far suggested.

"So we'll discuss sales again after this is over?"

I nodded at Felice's question.

"One last thing, Teddy told me the Black Rose is still in Satellite," Cyril said gloomily, "we need to keep enough people at HQ in case we need to evacuate again. Especially if we're sending people to duel Adaros."

First of all, I regret teaching him the word 'HQ' yesterday. Secondly, what was Akiza still doing in the Satellite? What did she not yet accomplish? Whether or not her remaining mission(s) involved us, our conflict with the Adaros might be complicated with her roaming free in the Satellite.

Specifically, I was concerned about all of us dying from duel monster attacks. With access to thousands of different monsters, Akiza was much more powerful than all of us combined, even when we're armed with make-shift grenades. So I must prevent such a confrontation.

"Don't bother, I'll take care of it," I replied.

...

Greiger glared at the tiny form in front of him. He had little doubt that he could crush her skull with his bare hands. Yet here he was, listening to her orders. Goodwin had better make good on his end of the bargain.

"What was it that you wanted me to do?" He asked threateningly, not because he didn't hear her the first time, rather so she would have a chance to change her answer.

"I need you to kidnap a girl, Akiza's her name, I'll give you the address later." I had no intentions to change my request. Having Greiger around has been awesome. He is physically capable of carrying out the less desirable tasks, and is protected by Rex Goodwin so that he remains immune from the law. Now I fully understand why a gang always needs somebody to do the dirty work, it's so convenient!

I noticed Greiger's face twitch, his teeth clenched so tightly a vein popped out of the side of his forehead. That's doesn't look healthy.

"What makes you think I'd do it?" Greiger asked calmly, the fury behind his words were evident even to somebody as thick as me.

"You did it before…?" I answered instinctively before realizing that was the exact wrong thing to say. "Look," I laughed sheepishly, trying to pull my foot back out of my mouth, "I know how it sounds," in fact, I just realized how it sounds, asking a grown man to kidnap a teenage girl in a place where law enforcement was at best optional, "but I need you to keep her out of the loop for a while. Like a day maybe. I don't even need to see her, in fact, I'd prefer it if she didn't know I existed. And," I added as an afterthought, "If it makes you more comfortable, I can get Felice to go with you?"

"That won't be necessary," Greiger replied tersely, "I shall carry out the mission as instructed."

"Perfect!" I smiled, relieved. I didn't have anybody else who could keep Akiza out of commission temporarily, not without Sector Security coming after us at least. I really needed to wrestle the rights to the river from Arcadia's hands, and real-life duel monster attacks wasn't going to help. "You'll need to rush her," I advised, "Don't ask, just trust me on this. Rush her, knock her out, and keep her unconscious for 24 hours. I think Chaos has something that might help with that." Great, I need to hear myself before I say things. I could almost see Greiger's disdain grow, and I can't even blame him.

"And my payment?" Greiger asked. His true payment would come from Rex Goodwin of course, in the form of infrastructure commissioned by Kaiba Corp, but the technology he received from this girl would also have a profound impact on the lives of his village.

"Zigzix just finished a heater design last night," I scratched my head, "You can take the design now or the prototype when we have it. I'll get him to make it solar-powered for you." Being the energy expert (there's probably a more technical term for this that I'm not aware of), Zigzix had designed a heater with readily available materials from the Satellite. The key, he said, was to replace the copper elements regularly, rather than wanting to find a permanent fixture like Nervin had been attempting. I didn't understand him, but it worked, so that's good enough for me.

"I'll take both," Greiger said simply, "and the address for the girl."

"Tomorrow," I added just in case, "we need her out of commission for tomorrow, say, from 10 am?" I don't think I'd get up before then, "24 hours should be enough. If it's not, we'll let you know somehow."

In hindsight, I might have been more influenced by my criminally-inclined friends than I thought. Taking that into consideration, it's great that I had Greiger around so I was never charged for any of it.

Greiger had never been more confident in his decision to spy on this Satellite scum. Though there were undoubtedly many honorable and respectable people in this town, she was definitely not one of them. This was the second person he had been asked to kidnap in less than a week, he had little doubt as to her other activities. In the meantime though, he could only comply with her orders. He came to Domino to save his village from poverty and despair, it was beyond his powers to save the residents of this Satellite as well.

* * *

 **A/N :** I was always very amused when they mentioned the Satellite as being completely isolated in the anime, thus distanced from human contact and the rest of civilization etc. So you're on an island, so's the entire country of Japan. Humans have learned to deal with nuisances like that with the help of prehistoric technology like boats.


	23. Mermails

**Disclaimer:** I do not own YGO 5D's.

 **A/N:** Summoned monsters will be bolded, as will changes in LP. This is the last time I write a duel between two swarming decks.

Plots in/between the duel will be separated by …

* * *

I got up bright and early the next morning. Feeling truly energized for the first time since I got to the Satellite, I had something to look forward to- beating the Adaros so I would have access to food from the outside. Baby steps, I reminded myself, baby steps.

To obtain food from outside the Satellite, and I mean real food, I have carefully designed a series of intricate, Wiley-Coyote-elaborate plans, and today is the second step. First, I set up a business in Satellite to generate profit, next I will gain access to transportation, route and vehicle, through a duel of all things; smuggle people out of the Satellite illegally, then smuggle them back in illegally with the desired goods. The things I do for food…

Of course, there's also the small issue of getting decent enough cards that I could defeat Dark Signers with an Exodia deck and prevent the destruction of the world, but I'm not entirely hopeful about that idea. Let's just say I made alternative arrangements.

Grateful Nervin had cleaned my clothes last night, I quickly got dressed and made my way downstairs to the entirely unappetizing 'bread' and water that makes up a meal.

I had briefly debated going alone, since everybody else had specific and rather urgent assignments. Chaos dissuaded me of the idea, correctly pointing out that I would need the appropriate backup to ensure my opponents carried out their part of the bargain. Plus, dueling was the most popular form of entertainment here, and nobody wants to be left behind. Truth is, dueling used to be the only form of entertainment here, now there're radios and mp3s, but dueling remains most popular.

So after a coin flip, and some ensuing violence, Felice, Vincent and Chaos went to the pier with me to meet the infamous Adaros.

* * *

Out of sheer habit, Greiger took away Akiza's deck. He didn't bother tying her down like Yuki (strongly and repeatedly) advised, he can't imagine a situation where the red-haired girl would overpower him.

He picked the unconscious form off the floor and placed her on the couch, then sat beside the table to wait for her to get up.

"Hmm?" Akiza moaned softly as she opened her eyes, "Who are you?" She sat up immediately upon seeing her attacker, her hand reached instinctively for her deck but only felt the empty holster in its place. "Where're my cards?"

"I apologize," Greiger sat straight in the uncomfortable-even-by-Satellite-standards stool, "I've been commissioned to keep you here for the next day. I will return your deck to you at this time tomorrow."

"By whom?" Akiza asked suspiciously. There're quite a few people who might want her dead, but not nearly as many who would take the extra effort to make sure she stayed alive.

"Yuki Tono from the Development," Greiger replied readily. He was going to bring it up even if Akiza hadn't asked, if anything, it might help to foil whatever plan that satellite scum had. First Crow's kids then this girl, Tono had gone entirely too far.

"Why?" Akiza asked just like he knew she would. "Where is she? I'll duel her face-to-face!"

"From what I know," only Greiger's natural impassiveness kept the smug expression off his face, "Tono left to attack an Arcadia group at the pier. She wanted you out of the way."

"The Adaros!" Akiza paled. The group arranged her trips in and out of the Satellite, and Akiza didn't like to think how long it would take Divine to get her out of here without them.

"That is correct," Greiger confirmed her fears, "Tono plans on taking over the area for her personal gains."

"And why are you telling me this?" Akiza shrank further back into the sofa, "what do you want?"

"I am here to complete the task I was assigned," Greiger replied, allowing his lips to quirk up a barely-noticeable degree, "I thought you might like a chance to do the same."

Akiza nodded slowly. This man doesn't seem to want to do her harm, and all she needed was a chance to get at any duel monster card.

Greiger appeared entirely comfortable in the ensuing silence, while Akiza fidgeted nervously and picked at her nails, her eyes darting around the room for a chance to grab a card and free herself, but Greiger was too close, he'd be able to stop her before she made a move. He might not, but she didn't want to risk it.

* * *

The pier was located 12km away.

Knowing Satellite, that information alone should be warning enough. Sadly, I didn't know Satellite. Not as well as I thought anyways.

We travelled via duel runner, as in I clung onto Chaos' scooter as tightly as I could while he used sewage pipes, roofs and sometimes walls as road. Admittedly, all of those were a little easier to travel on than the actual roads. So naturally, when we stopped by the ocean, I felt off the 'runner', collapsing to the ground on all fours.

"Yuki Tono," the husky yet smooth voice sounded so perfect I ignored its menacing tone.

I looked up and followed the pair of long legs to their owner.

Being an anime world, I was used to far-above-average appearances being, well average. But even by anime standards, he was still outrageously good-looking. The man was in his early thirties and had a charm that, like good wine, came with maturity. I was careful not to drool over his brilliant blond hair, come-hither green eyes and a smile more deserving of the cover page of teen magazines than any Jack Atlas photoshoot. He was dressed in an understated dark grey suit that complemented his slender yet muscular physique and paired it with a checkered red tie, good fashion sense rarely seen in the Satellite. Also rare was his flawless complexion in the color of rich cream, I swallowed at the sudden pang of hunger- he looked delectable.

And that's the highest compliment I'd give a guy, comparing them favorably to food.

"Here, let me help you," He reached a hand. I grabbed it automatically and let him pull me up, flashing my most attractive smile and deciding to ignore the sinister glint in his eyes.

He looked oddly familiar though.

"Blizzard?" Chaos caught one look and rushed over without locking his duel runner, "Yuki, get away from him."

I had almost forgotten about the blond who tagged dueled with Chaos that night. He cleaned up very nicely.

"Chaos, how good of you to visit," Blizzard nodded in Chaos' direction, there was no trace of his old-self left, "And these are your friends I presume? I know I certainly remember this one." My hand was beginning to hurt in his grip

"Where's Ara?" Chaos asked guardedly as Vincent and Felice cornered Blizzard.

"She was-' Blizzard flashed a cocky smile, "Let's just say she was transferred… Somewhere. But that hardly matters. I'm now the leader of the Adaros, and I'll be happy to crush your little pet project here before she rots in jail."

Chaos grabbed Blizzard's wrist, forcing him to release my hand, "he can be a little petty," Chaos explained apologetically, "you did ruin his deck."

"Petty?" Blizzard's green eyes glared accusingly at Chaos, "After the Sector put a red light on your sales operation, they put a bounty on my head for being part of it. Divine bailed me out to work for him, or I might be six feet under by now. And you call me petty?"

"Maybe not this time-" Chaos admitted. Though he had been either arrested or unconscious for most of it and thus had more than sufficient reason to defend himself, he still felt guilty for leaving Blizzard to fend for himself against the Sector.

"This isn't vengeance," Blizzard shrugged, calming down, "This is a job. Either this or I go back, so you see, it's nothing personal. Now, I believe that's enough chitchat, you were here for a duel."

"I thought I ruined your deck," I said quickly before the duel could start. I needed to know because, well, using a Six Samurai deck, the only way I could win was targeting my deck to my opponent's.

"I'm using Ara's Mermail deck," Blizzard replied, obviously understanding my attempt to gauge his deck, confident enough to tell me anyways.

"You're feeling pretty good about yourself," I grinned as I finished the final adjustments to my deck.

"I have defeated more duelists than you've met," Blizzard boasted with his head high,

"Quality over quantity then," Felice commented.

Being more familiar with the game, neither Chaos nor Vincent looked as optimistic. Mermails are notorious for OTKs, doubtlessly more powerful when playing with 4000LP. But I do have a couple of tricks up my sleeves. Having had the power of the internet at my fingertips, these kids trapped in the Satellite wouldn't know what hit them

"We'll duel here," Blizzard smirked, as a duel stadium rose up from the pier and we each ascended the duelist platform. "Don't look down, there're sharks in the water."

Well I wasn't going to, but now that he mentioned it, obviously I had to look. Grumbling under my breath, I searched but did not find any sharks. I did find a couple of sizeable boats that would fit our need perfectly. We're definitely 'taking' this, I decided.

* * *

 **Turn 1: Blizzard's Turn Yuki 4000, Blizzard 4000**

"Why don't you go first," I offered, considering we were coercing him to gamble away his employer's property.

"Don't mind if I do," Blizzard flicked a strand of blond hair out of his eyes, "I think I'll start with this, I discard two water monsters to the graveyard to special summon **Mermail Abyss-Megalo** (lv7, 2400/1900) to the field in attack mode. Since one of the monsters I discarded was Mermail Abyssgunde (lv3, 1400/800), I am able to special summon a Mermail monster in the graveyard with her special ability, so I special summon the other monster I discarded, **Mermail Abyss-Pike** (lv4, 1600/800)."

"Two monsters and he didn't even use his normal summon yet," Felice noted, "Yuki's not off to a great start." Both Vincent and Chaos looked a little pale, I didn't look too happy either. It was a lucky draw on my opponent's part, which just spelt trouble for me.

"When Mermail Abyss-Pike is summoned, I can discard one water monster to bring another into my hand, so I'll discard Atlantean Dragoon (lv4, 1800/0) to bring Deep Sea Diva (lv2, tuner, 200/400) to my hand. And by Atlantean Dragoon's effect, I can add another lv3 or below monster to my hand, I think I'll add another Deep Sea Diva. Oh, before I forget, when Abyss-Megalo is summoned, I can bring one Abyss spell/trap card to my hand, so I add Abyss-Sphere."

In one move, Blizzard added three cards to his hand. I guess this is an advantage to duel disks, all his moves must be permitted by the game so I don't need to keep track.

"Like your friend pointed out, I haven't normal summoned yet. I normal summon **Deep Sea Diva**. Her effect allows me to special summon yet another lv3 or below Sea Serpent from my deck, so come forth **Atlantean Marksman** (lv3, 1400/0). And finally, I tune my level 2 Deep Sea Diva with my level 3 Atlantean Markman, from order comes justice, from justice comes Light. I summon **Armades, Keeper of Boundaries (lv5, 2300/1500).** I'll place two cards face-down and end my turn. You're lucky it's the first turn and I can't attack, but the next turn will be your last."

 **Blizzard: Hand 2, Graveyard 4, Field 3 monsters 2 face-downs**

Ouch, I grimaced. In addition to the 3 monsters and 2 trap cards Blizzard laid onto the field, he also set up a good graveyard, which was easily accessible for Mermail decks. My one comfort, cold comfort though it is, was the lack of XYZ cards, I wouldn't stand a chance if he brought the lv7 XYZ monsters out.

But not all was lost.

Though Mermail was a powerful deck, Blizzard's weakness was as obvious as his strength. Having used an Ice Blizzard deck previously, Blizzard still fell into the habit of control decks, where he gets his most powerful cards out onto the field as quickly as possible. While that works well for a control deck, swarming decks like Mermails can more often benefit from having a reserve in the hand in the first turn, rather than leaving his monsters vulnerable on the field.

…

"Three monsters on the first turn," Vincent let out a breath he had been holding, "Yuki better get her synchros out soon."

"Yeah," Chaos agreed, "And by tributing another water monster, Abyss-Megalo can attack twice in the same battle phase. He wasn't kidding about wiping Yuki out in one turn."

"This is not good," Felice said thoughtfully.

Vincent gave Felice a look for stating the obvious.

"Cover for me," Felice arranged the two men in front of her to shield her from the guards, in the off chance anybody looked this way, "I'm going to find Ara."

"You think she's still in the Satellite?" Chaos asked.

"Unless she was promoted," Felice gave him a rare sarcastic smile, "Wherever else could they have shipped her? Divine wouldn't pull the kind of strings necessary to get her out, it's not worth the trouble if he wants to get rid of her. And this is the safest place in the Satellite they have." Felice swept a furtive glance at the guards, "if she's still in the Satellite, she'll be here."

"You'll find her and do what exactly?" Vincent questioned suspiciously.

"Stop the duel. As the rightful leader of the Adaros, surely she'd be the more suitable candidate to answer a challenger rather than that lying hack who somehow cheated his way into his current position."

"I know Blizzard," Chaos said uncertainly, "I think he was telling the truth about Arcardia hiring him to replace Ara. What's that look for?" He asked wide-eyed.

"Ara has credibility here," Vincent explained patiently, "so if she says Blizzard lied, they would believe her."

"The truth hardly matters unless it's vigilantly enforced," Felice grimaced before slinking off.

 **Turn 2: Yuki's Turn Yuki 4000, Blizzard 4000**

"My turn then," I announced loudly to hide my decreasing confidence. I had an excellent opening hand, but the fact is, Samurai decks were released a couple of years earlier than Mermails (by the 'real' timeline) and just wasn't as powerful.

"First, I play Gateway of the Six, for every monster I summon, I gain 2 counters. Next comes the spell Six Samurai United, which gains one counter every time I summon, for a maximum of two. I'll start by summoning **Legendary Six Samurai- Kageki (lv3)**. When he's normal summoned, I can special summon another Six Samurai monster from my hand, and I choose, **Kagemusha of the Six Samurai (lv2, tuner).** I activate the effect of Gateway of the Six, removing one counter from Six Samurai United and three from Gateway of the Six, I bring from my deck Legendary Six Samurai Kizan (lv4, 1800/500) to my hand"

"I tune my two monsters together to," I didn't have a cute little line prepared for my synchro monster, "summon **Legendary Six Samurai- En Shi (lv5, 2500/1400),** this add another counter to Six Samurai United for a total of two counters, so I incur its effect to draw two more cards from my deck."

 **Yuki: Hand 5, Graveyard 3, Field 2**

I didn't realize I was pushing too hard on my deck until I noticed my knuckles turning white. "En Shi, attack Armades, Keeper of Boundaries."

Blizzard LP dropped by **200** to 3800. Neither of Blizzard's two facedown cards activated, I noted with some dismay. Sure Mermail decks weren't known for their counter-attack trap cards, but that just meant I could expect a slew of special summons in the next turn.

I laid two traps down and ended my turn.

 **Yuki: Hand 3, Graveyard 3, Field 1 monster 1 Gateway of the Six 2 face-downs**

 **Turn 3: Blizzard's Turn Yuki 4000, Blizzard 3800**

"That's it? After that big speech, I thought you'd have something interesting planned. Now step aside and let an adult handle things," Blizzard sneered, twisting his rather at tractive features into a, actually he still looks pretty good. "I think I'll start with the spell Salvage, to bring back Deep Sea Diva and Mermail Abyssgunde from the graveyard to my hand. And when **Deep Sea Diva** comes onto the field, she's bringing with her **Atlantean Heavy Infantry (lv2, 0/1600)** from the deck, in defense mode."

That's where knowledge of the game comes in. Abyssmegalo could send one water monster (on the field or not) to attack twice per turn, and Atlantean Heavy Infantry can destroy one face-up card on the field when it's sent to the graveyard. So I activated my trap, the ace I'd been relying on since I decided on this duel.

"I activate, Diamond Dust, this trap card destroys all water monsters on the field, and deals you 500 damage for each monster destroyed. I count 4."

I saw a copy of Diamond Dust in Nervin's stash and got two more copies from Chaos. This card is basically an enhanced Raigeki for water monsters.

 **Blizzard: Hand: 3, Graveyard: 10, Field: 2 face-downs**

The Blizzard gasped as **2000 damage** was dealt to his LP, dropping it to 1800 as his field cleared of all but two trap cards.

"I was prepared for this," he gritted his teeth, "and I have laid a trap for this occasion, Abyss-Sphere, which allows me to special summon any Mermail monster from my deck."

"Good thing I have a monster for that, I activate my Legendary Samurai – En Shi's special ability, allowing me to negate the activation of one spell/trap card per turn." I said casually, though I was a little concerned. There was still another trap card on his field.

"You should let me finish," Blizzard remained unfazed, "I activate my Abyss-Sphere to special summon Mermail **Abyss-Linde (lv3, 1500/1200)** to the field. Your warrior destroys the activated trap card, and when Abyss-Sphere is destroyed, Abyss-Linde is also destroyed. The monsters summoned by Abyss-Sphere normally has their effects negated, but Abyss-Linde's effects are activated in the graveyard and remains unaffected, allowing me to me bring out any Mermail monster from my deck, and I choose **Mermail Abyss-Leed (Lv7, 2700/1700)**."

I can't believe somebody who's never used the internet one-upped me on card rulings.

"I discard one card to special summon **Mermail Abyssteus** (1700/2400), in attack mode. Now he only has 1700 attack that's true but to summon him, I discarded Mermail Abyssgunde, which allows me to special summon on monster in defense mode from my deck, and I'll bring out another copy of Mermail Abyss-Leed."

"And when Mermail Abyssteus is summoned, I am able to bring one level four or below monster to my hand, I think I'll add Mermail AbyssNose (1500/1500)."

 **Blizzard: Hand: 2, Graveyard: 13, Field: 3 monster, 1 face-downs**

 **Yuki: Hand 3, Graveyard 5, Field 1 monster 1 Gateway of the Six, 1 face-down card**

"I play Mystic Space Typhoon," he flipped over his face-down cared, "to destroy your trap." My Dimensional prison was destroyed.

"Now Mermail Abyssleed, Aquatic Slaughter!" The armored aquaman destroyed my warrior and **200** of my life points.

Mermail Abbyssteus followed, dealing me another **1700** damage.

"That's it for my turn, let's see how long you can last when your opponent has a decent deck."

 **Turn 4: Yuki's Turn Yuki 2100, Blizzard 1800**

 **Yuki: Hand 4, Graveyard 6, Field: 1 Gateway of the Six,**

"I play, Reinforcement of the Army and add Six Samurai Zanji (lv4, 1800/1300) to my hand." I noticed Blizzard's annoyance before remembering I got that card from him. Oh well. "I summon **Six Samurai Zanji (lv4, 1800/1300),** and since I have him on the field, I special summon Six Samurai Kizan (lv4, 1800/1000) to my field."

Blizzard still looked uninterested, well that's going to change quite quickly.

"The two summons have given my Gateway of the Six 4 more counters, allowing me to bring **Grandmaster of the Six (lv5, 2100/800)** into my hand, and when there's a Six Samurai on the field, he can be brought out as well."

"Kizan, destroy Mermail Abyssteus! I should mention, when there're two or more of his fellow warriors on the field, Kizan gains 300 attack, bringing his attack to 2100."

Blizzard's life points decreased by **400** points.

"Now Zanji, attack Mermail Abyssleed."

"But my monsters is clearly stronger," Blizzard protested.

"That's true, but when Zanji attacks a monster, that monster is destroyed regardless of its attack or defense. Zanji will also be destroyed in the attack, but I think I'll let Kizan take his place."

My LP decreased by **900** , but Mermail Abyssleed was sliced into multiple pieces and disappeared with my Six Samurai Kizan.

 **Yuki: Hand 2, Graveyard 8, Field: 2 monsters, 1 Gateway of the Six, 1 face-down card**

"Now, Grandmaster of the Six, destroy Abyss-Leed!" Having only 1700 defense, the powerful aqua monster was sent to the graveyard.

"Don't celebrate too soon, the duel's not over yet."

"Then I end my turn, let's see what you can do."

 **Turn 5: Blizzard's Turn Yuki 1200, Blizzard 1400**

 **Blizzard: Hand 3, Graveyard 15, Field 0**

Blizzard looked down at this hand, his brows knitted into a frown, obviously not getting the card he wanted.

"I summon **Mermail Abyss-Ocea (lv3, 1100/1900)** to the field, and I equip to 4 Abyss-scale of Cetius, raising his attack by 800 points. Attack Zanji, Toxic Blast Typhoon."

The attack dealt me **100** damage.

"I'll place one card face-down and end my turn." Blizzard elected to end the turn with an empty hand.

…

"Blizzard," A woman said quietly from the sidelines.

"Ara," Blizzard paled before he even looked at her.

I marveled at his expression before turning towards our intruder, and could hardly look away.

She had straight dark blue hair that ran down to the middle of her back, in a way vaguely reminiscent of waves of the sea. Her sapphire eyes reflected the light like the ocean at sunrise. A flowing white dress reached her ankles, was covered by a beige leather jacket. Not an inch of skin was revealed, everything was left to the imagination.

I stared at Ara, then turned back to stare at Blizzard, then at Ara again. I just found out that I resented people who are _that_ much prettier than me.

"Hi," she nodded gracefully, "I'm Ara. Divine trapped me after I discovered his secrets, thank you for sending Felice to my rescue."

"I'm glad you're alright," I smiled. I just felt three experience points being added to my 'lying' skill.

"What did you find out?" Chaos asked curiously before Vincent could stop him.

Ara bit her lips sensually, looking up at me as she carefully debated her words.

"Divine had been brainwashing a bunch of higher-ups," Blizzard answered for her, "it's not exactly a secret in Arcadia, you were just being too vocal about it."

"Blizzard had somehow gotten access to-" Ara began as Felice prodded her.

"Let me finish the duel first, then we can talk" I cut her off. Given the choice, I would rather defeat Blizzard and gain control over the area, rather than having it handed over in her bid to escape Divine's control. It's a control thing. If I could, I'd probably get it looked at.

And if Felice had got her on our side, she'd know the right things to say after I win the duel.

* * *

"Akiza," Yusei called out cautiously as he arrived at Akiza's temporary apartment, the large duel runner parked at the back caught his eye. It's just possible that somebody from the City is here to pick Akiza up, though Yusei wasn't optimistic about that premise. "Are you up?"

The crab-haired duelist expertly navigated the falling hazards in the building and arrived at Akiza's apartment. He pushed open the door and quickly jumped aside, successfully evading Greiger as the larger man lunged outside.

"Yusei Fudo," Greiger recognized the A+ priority satellite on his employer's list, "leave. This doesn't concern you."

"It's my friend in there," Yusei replied, "so this is very much a concern of mine."

"In that case," Greiger judged Yusei carefully. He can't risk harming Yusei, vice-director Lazar had repeatedly emphasized that point, "let's settle this with a duel."

"A turbo duel then," Yusei didn't hesitate to accept the challenge. As long as he got Greiger away from here, he knew Akiza could take care of herself.

"Fine," Greiger nodded, "just let me lock the door."

Apartments in the satellite, the practical ones at least, are all fitted with iron bars in the window the protect against theft or worse, that girl can't possibly escape the apartment.

Akiza heard Yusei's voice and saw Greiger leave. That was all the time she needed to rush to the bed and pull out Botanical Girl (lv3, 1300/1100) from under her pillow. It wasn't her most powerful monster, but the low energy cost and smaller size was much more useful in a situation like this.

Greiger snapped the lock shut with a satisfactory click. That sound was immediately followed by what sounded like machine-gun fire, as the entire door pierced by flower petals. Akiza gently pushed on the door, the piece of reinforced plastic crumbled and fell into a thousand pieces.

"Hi boys, miss me?" Akiza smiled, genuinely happy to see Yusei. Her duel monster didn't need further command and grabbed Greiger by the waist, hurling him head-first towards the metal railing of the stairs.

"Akiza, wait!" Yusei called out just in time.

Akiza puckered out her lower lip at Yusei's words. Greiger's position was shifted and his back collided painfully into the walls of the stairwell instead. A particularly poor decision on the part of the psychic duelist, that impact seemed to be the last straw as the entire building began to shake and crumble.

Akiza ran out, but not before giving Yusei a look. Yusei stared after her and her pre-emptive refusal at getting Greiger out.

"Can you move?" Yusei asked the other duelist, who replied with a pained grunted and a failed attempt at getting up. "Wait here," Realizing Greiger was unlikely to get out in time before the building collapses, Yusei examined the growing hole on the outer wall of the building and enlarged it best he could. Greiger understood him immediately, struggling to stand up, he let Yusei pull him up and toward the hole, as the crab-haired duelist pushed him out of the second-story stairwell and jumped out after him.

"Why does he do these things?" Akiza rolled her eyes as she saw the pair fall. She was tempted to let them land unassisted, or better yet, place a large piece of sharp metal at Greiger's landing spot- it would serve him right for daring to kidnap her. Instead, Botanic Girl extended her vines/arms, and pulled both duelists into safety.

"Hey, are you alright?" Yusei asked Greiger.

"I am well, thank you," Greiger managed a smile, "though I believe it's her you should concern yourself with." He gestured to Akiza's retreating figure, "it wasn't good form to keep a young lady waiting, I believe she thought so as well."

"Where is she going?" Yusei wondered aloud.

"I believe to the pier," Greiger replied with a smile. Not answer Yusei's questioning look, he prompted, "Go, I'll be fine." Greiger had never met anyone would risk their own lives to save somebody else's, nor had he ever been saved by another. "Good luck," he added.

After double checking Greiger's condition, Yusei rode off toward the edge of the Satellite.

* * *

 **A/N:** Does anybody still remember Blizzard? He appeared once in chapter 5, I've been trying to bring him out ever since. And with Ara's appearance, that's all the OCs I have, barring any new character designs.

Now sing with me (to the tune of the Narwhal song)

Mermails mermails swimming in the ocean, causing a commotion, 'cause they're so awesome.

Mermails mermails swimming in the ocean, really powerful water deck, they beat synchrons in a fight.

 **A/N 2** : I can't believe I've already written 100k words… In my defense, I use very small words. Thank you guys for sticking with me!

And there's still so much plot left, why is there so much plot? But as I have already written a large portion of the Dark Signer arc, and really want to get to them, the story will go on.


	24. A Way Out of Satellite

**Disclaimer:** I do not own YGO 5D''s

* * *

 **Turn 6: Yuki's Turn Yuki 1100, Blizzard 1400**

 **Yuki: Hand 3, Graveyard 9, Field: 1 monsters, 1 Gateway of the Six (2 counters),**

 **Blizzard: Hand 0, Graveyard 15, Field 1 monster, 1 face-up equip card, 1 face-down**

I drew my next card, hoping to finish the duel this turn instead of dragging it out, which would give Mermails an even larger advantage.

"I play Six Samurai United, then summon **Kizan (lv4, 1800/1000)** to the field. Next, I activate Gateway of the Six, and add Mizuho (1600/1200) to my hand." Mizuho has the ability to tribute a monster to destroy one on the field, which I'll hopefully won't need.

"Grandmaster of the Six, attack Abyss-Ocea!"

"I activate my trap card, Scrap-Iron Scarecrow, which negates one attack for me per turn." Blizzard replied confidently.

"In that case, I'll place 1 card face-down and end my turn," I said through gritted teeth.

"Yuki, you may end this challenge if you like," Ara offered after observing my inaction in the last turn.

"Relax," I rolled my eyes, sounding more reassuring than I felt, "he has a single card in his hand and I know every card on his field, what's he gonna do?"

 **Turn 7: Blizzard's Turn Yuki 1100, Blizzard 1400**

 **Blizzard: Hand 1, Graveyard 15, Field 1 monster, 1 face-up equip card, 1 face-down**

"Let me show you what I am going to do," Blizzard answered indignantly, "I'm afraid I do have a few tricks up my sleeves when I have a decent deck. I play Pot of Avarice, by returning 5 monsters in my graveyard, I can draw two cards."

This is a good thing I supposed, for him to have too many cards in his graveyard is dangerous.

"Perfect. I play Instant Fusion, by paying 1000LP, I special summon the fusion monster **Elder God Noden (lv4, 2000/2200)** from my extra deck. When this monster is summoned, I can special summon another monster from my graveyard, and I choose, **Deep Sea Diva** I tune my level 2 deep sea diva, with my level 4 Elder God Noden to synchro summon- The essence of life, the root of change, reveal the strength of air, come forth, **Orient Dragon (lv6, 2300/1000** )! For my normal summon, I'll bring **Mermail Abyssnose (lv4, 1500/1500)** to the field. That should be enough to wipe you out this turn."

"Let's end this duel now! Abyss-Ocea, destroy Kizan, Mystic Monsoon Splash!"

"I activate my spell card, Asceticism of the Six Samurai, allowing me to special summon **Six-Samurai Zanji (1800/1300)** from my deck to the field in attack mode.

The 1900 attack monster set a flash of lightning toward my warrior, obliterating him and **100** of my lifepoints.

Blizzard grumbled when he realized he wasn't going to be able to finish the duel this turn.

"Now, Orient Dragon, destroy Zanji, Aero Energy Strike! "

This is just weird, how does he remember all these attack names, doesn't he have something better to do? I couldn't help wondering as the dragon took way **500** of my LP.

Seeing as Abyssnose only has 1500 attack, Blizzard reluctantly ended his turn.

"So you survive another turn, let's see how your single monster stand up to my army from the deep seas," Blizzard smirked, "act fast, or you'll be fish food very soon."

"Ara!" Chaos nudged the blue-haired woman urgently.

"Yuki knows what she's doing," Ara smiled, no 'I-told-you-so' leaking into her voice at all, "I'm sure she'll ask for our help if she wants it."

 **Blizzard: Hand 0, Graveyard 13, Field 3 monster, 1 face-up equip card, 1 face-down**

 **Turn 8: Yuki's Turn Yuki 500, Blizzard 400**

 **Yuki: Hand 2, Graveyard 12, Field: 1 monsters, 1 Gateway of the Six (3 counters), 1 Six Samurai United (2 counter),**

"I activate Gateway of the Six, deducting 1 counter from Six Samurai United and 3 from Gateway of the Six, to bring **Kagemusha** (lv2, tuner, 400/1800) from the graveyard to my hand." The special summon last turn had added to my counters, "and summon him to tune with Grandmaster of the Six Samurai (lv5) to synchro summon, **Driven Daredevil (lv7, 2400/2100)** ". But I can't attack, or rather there's no point given his Scarecrow trap card.

"I activate Six Samurai United, and draw two cards. I place 3 cards face-down and end my turn," I decided, placing all but the last card in my hand face-down.

"It only fair to let you know," I continued, "Daredevil has a special ability. If he's attacked by monsters with a higher attack, that monster would be destroyed instead."

Blizzard muttered darkly, something about privileged duelists and their unreasonably powerful cards.

 **Turn 9: Blizzard's Turn Yuki 500, Blizzard 400**

 **Blizzard: Hand 1, Graveyard 13, Field 3 monster, 1 face-up equip card, 1 face-down (scrap-iron scarecrow)**

"My turn then!" Blizzard added a card to his hand.

"I summon **Deep Sea Diva** (lv2, tuner, 200/400)) from my hand, and use her effect to special summon **Atlantean Marksman** (lv3, 1400/0) onto the field, in attack mode."

A man/fish hybrid appeared on the field, staring down at me threateningly and filling in the last monster slot.

"Individually, none of them can stand up to your warrior, but when their strengths are combined, they are unstoppable."

"Another synchro?" Chaos grumbled, "Are you sure we have to wait until Yuki asked for help? What if she's too proud?"

Felice snorted and didn't dignify that question with a response.

"I tune my level 2 Deep Sea Diva," Blizzard continued, "with my level 3 Atlantean Marksman and my level 4 Abyss-Nose. Unexplored depths of the ocean harbors innumerable terrors that will rise and devour the land. Reveal yourself, **Trishula, Dragon of Ice (lv9, 2700/2200)**! When he's synchro summoned, he can banish one card each from your hand, deck and field. It doesn't matter what effect your Daredevil has, say goodbye to your synchro monster."

"I activate Breakthrough Skill," Of course I'd have an effect negation card out when I'm fighting a Mermail deck, "by discarding one card from my hand, this trap card negate your monster's effect."

"I knew you'd set up a trap," Blizzard smirked, "I send the equip spell card Abyss-Scale of Cetus to the graveyard, in exchange, it negate the effect of your trap."

"I know," I replied drily, I had used a Mermail deck before, not well, but I was familiar enough with the build, "your equip card isn't exactly hidden, but I had discarded the last card in my hand. Trishula's effect requires that he banishes one card each from the hand, grave and field, and when I have an empty hand, his effects cannot activate."

It's one of those things you only know if you've spent way too much time on a children's card game.

"I change Abyss-Ocea to defense mode and end my turn." Blizzard announced, looking justifiably disappointed but not defeated, "let's see how you can stand up to my two synchro monsters."

 **Turn 10: Yuki's Turn Yuki 500, Blizzard 400**

 **Yuki: Hand 1 Graveyard 17, Field: 1 monsters, 1 Gateway of the Six (3 counters), 2 cards face down**

"You seem to forget the traps I have," I smirked, "I activate, Double-Edged Sword Technique, allowing me to special summon two Samurai monsters from my graveyard in attack mode **. Kageki (lv3, wind, 200/2000)** , **Mizuho (lv3, fire, 1600/800)** welcome back to the field."

Blizzard looked confused, no doubt wondering why I didn't bring back a tuner and synchro summon. Little did he know that I didn't have a lot of synchro monsters, Daredevil was in fact the most powerful synchro monster I had.

"Now I activate my trap, Fuh-Rin-Ka-Zan!" With knowledge of YGO card zealously guarded and without access to the internet, it's just another trap card Blizzard never would have heard of. So I explained patiently. "When there is wind, water, fire and earth attribute monsters on the field, I can destroy all monsters on my opponent's side of the field."

Both water monsters, however powerful they once were, were swept away in a storm of pure energy.

"I think you know the rest," I tilted my chin up to inspect the completely empty field in front of me, "charge!"

That single Scarecrow wasn't enough to stop my attacks, and Blizzard's life points duly dropped to zero.

* * *

"Good duel," I grinned. Blizzard looked horrified. Personally, I thought it was a little exaggerated for losing a children's card game, but it didn't take me long to find out the cause.

"Good duel," A high, mirthless voice, perhaps best described as a shriek echoed from afar, I was certain everybody had heard it as clearly as if it had been whispered in their ears.

Recognizing its owner, Blizzard jumped off the duelist platform finding cover behind its raised stadium. Vincent, Felice and even Ara immediately dropped into a fighting stance. Chaos raced towards me. Vincent grumbled darkly and chased after him.

Me? I was staring blankly, confused why everybody was acting weird all of a sudden.

"Yuki Tono!" The feminine voice shrieked my name, "So you're the one who's been going behind my back!"

"Akiza!" I greeted automatically with a smile at the flying (flying!) psychic duelist, then realizing she probably wasn't a friend right now.

Before I had a chance to justify my actions in hopes of talk Akiza down, giant vines from an even larger and quite man-eating-looking plant sprouted towards me in a way that defied many aspects of molecular biology and gravity. I knew I should duck, or run, or jump or something, but the vines came at me from all directions, I felt any direction I moved in would only speed my doom. So I stood there frozen in the spot instead, as magical plants charged towards me.

Chaos somehow scrambled up on stairs and pulled me down the platform with him just in time to avoid a particularly-densely thorned branch as it crashed into the metal duelist platform, sending it hurling towards the ground while the plant retreated apparently unscathed.

"Keep her alive," Chaos dragged me behind the arena and shoved me in Blizzard's general direction just as the part of the platform collapsed. Vincent lunged towards us, falling on top of Chaos as both landed on the ground, the metal just grazed his face, leaving a two inch gash, blood trickled down his face and disappeared into his ridiculously-red shirt.

"Thanks buddy," Chaos breathed out a sigh of relief as he picked himself up off the ground, "that thing would have sliced my face in half."

"Don't worry about it," Vincent returned a particularly awkward grin as to not pull on the wound on his face, "I look good either way, but your ugly mug can't take any more damage."

Blizzard shrank further back and away from me, shielding his face from the flying debris, "I can't-"

Before Blizzard finished protesting, Chaos grabbed Vincent and was off again, "Keep her alive, and when this is all over, she'll keep you alive."

Blizzard nodded and pushed me behind him.

In the back of my mind, I was vaguely aware that Divine might want to get rid of Blizzard after his failure, when Blizzard would be useless but still know too much, and the Sector would certainly be after him again with a vengeance. The front of my mind was mostly occupied by 'oh my god, oh my god, oh my god I'm going to die!'

I could've told you that I was worse than useless in a situation like this,

"Come out come out wherever you are!" Akiza said in a shrill sing-song voice, "It'll save both of us a lot of time!"

Yeah, her time spent looking for us, and our time spent on this planet. I was thankful that she was at least looking for me and not the others who remained in the open.

"No? Well I did ask nicely. Come on out, Blue Rose Dragon (lv4, 1600/1200)!"

A giant blue bird covered in a combination of scales and feathers appeared out of thin air, scouting the area for any sign of human presence, shooting balls of dark energy at the solid cement duel platform and generating basketball-sized dents in it. Why isn't the global government involved? Why isn't anybody concerned about giant monsters crossing over from another dimension to attack the human race?

Strangely enough, I didn't think about any of that at the time. 'It's not fair,' I remember myself thinking, 'we're all playing Yugioh and she's playing Pokémon.'

"Akiza, no!" Yusei arrived just in time to see Rose Archer (lv3, 1000/100) shoot at and take out a quarter of the duel arena, sending blocks of cement in all directions, barely missing his duel runner.

From my position, I could just see Felice grabbing a grenade from her backpack and hurling it towards Akiza and her monsters.

"You think you can defeat me again?" Akiza flicked her fingers and a giant wall of plants rose up in front of her, deflecting the grenade harmlessly away, "Wall of Thorns, come to my aid!"

"Akiza, don't do it!" Yusei was still trying in vain to get through to the redhead, who, to her credit, ignored him when she could have just as easily commanded any of her monsters to attack him.

"Keep going," Vincent advised as he dug out a small canister from a padded compartment in his backpack, "it'll give me cover." He quickly assembled a cannon-like device, really just a barrel with a small amount of explosives inside, and fire the shot.

Like all projectiles shot her way, it was deflected by Akiza's "Wall of Thorns", but unlike the grenades, this canister exploded to release a bout of invisible gas that reached Akiza before she knew to get away. The psychic duelist promptly lost consciousness and dropped towards the ground, Yusei raced up in his motorcycle and caught her unconscious form in midair.

Then there're the people who're playing Call of Duty,.

I emerged shakily from my hiding place. Okay, I was dragged out shakily from my hiding place by Blizzard.

"Tono," Yusei acknowledged me with a nod, with Akiza carefully cradled between the handles of his duel runner.

"You're not taking her," Vincent blocked his way, "she's too dangerous to all of us." That's quite something coming from the guy who carries poisonous gases in his backpack.

Akiza moaned softly in Yusei's arms, a quiet sound that put everybody on red alert. Felice picked up a grenade from her bag and handed another one to Chaos. Blizzard raced towards our previous shelter before coming back hesitantly and dragging me with him.

"Leave the girl Fudo," Chaos warned.

"She's just confused, she's hurting inside and so she lashes out at what's around her." Yusei defended, "I won't abandon her and leave her fate to you!" He reared the wheels of his duel runner dangerously. Vincent turned towards me to confirm before action.

"Let them go," I said, proud that my voice wasn't trembling if a little hoarse, "but if you take her Yusei, she's your responsibility. Anything else she does, it's on you."

Yusei nodded solemnly before racing off, leaving the rest of us in the dust.

"Wait! Greiger!" I shouted after him as the realization came to me, "where's Greiger?"

"Nervin's old place," Yusei replied before disappearing completely from view.

"He'll be fine," Blizzard fretted, "Let's go already, before Arcadia or Domino catches up with us."

"Catches up with you, you mean," Vincent corrected, casually darting out a tongue to lick the blood off his own face, "We need to secure control of the area first, before Arcadia sends anybody else."

I looked at Chaos and Felice respectively, I needed somebody I trusted to secure the pier, and Vincent needs stitches.

"I'll stay," Felice offered, "Chaos can go back with you." It's much riskier to stay, but she's probably better at handling anything that comes up than Chaos.

In that case, "Chaos, could you find Greiger and bring him back?" I wasn't overly concerned about Greiger, but in the Satellite, it's never good when you lose contact with people.

"If you need a hand, I could stay at the pier for now," Ara said understandingly, "until there's too much pressure from Arcadia."

"That would be perfect," Felice smiled back.

It would be perfect indeed, Ara made it clear that she wouldn't stay at the pier to influence our control and was even considerate enough to provide the excuse. I have no doubt Arcadia's 'pressure' would prompt her to leave when Felice had attained sufficient control over the area.

...

It was probably lucky that Chaos found Greiger when he did and haul him back from the debris next to Nervin's old place of residence, which had apparently just toppled over for some reason. Greiger's duel runner can now safely be presumed as stolen.

"He'll be okay," Chaos insisted as he lowered Greiger onto the table, "just give him a couple of days." The attempt to move Greiger upstairs had caused the man too much pain. These injuries were apparently so common in the Satellite it didn't even raise a stir, leaving me the only one to fuss over his injuries.

Even Greiger himself, barely conscious, nodded an agreement to that statement, to my exasperation and horror. I put my hand on his wrist and felt his pulse raced weakly against my finger.

"Leave me be," Greiger rasped out while coughing up bloody foam, the whites of his eyes looked particularly pale against the brown iris. He'd be great in a horror movie right now if he could still move.

"I don't see any bleeding," I noted. Greiger's clothing were ruined but mostly blood-free, certainly much less than the amount expected given his situation.

"So the bleeding's internal," Vincent shrugged, he grimaced when talking pulled on his wound, and barely stopped himself from grimacing again from the pain, "saves us the cleanup." He said through clenched teeth to minimize facial movement.

I examined his wound a little guiltily. The wound ran from just above the corner of his left eye to the middle of his cheek, its edges dehisced to reveal muscle underneath. Vincent was still debating whether to sew it up given the lack of anesthetics, so the wound remains as yet untouched. A centimeter more to the middle, and I'll need to find him the Millennium Eye.

"He needs blood," I said firmly, it really doesn't take a genius to figure it out, "and something to stop the bleeding."

"I can't get my hands on any morphine and you think you can get him the right type of blood?" Vincent scoffed,

I don't think that comparison worked, not in the world I was used to anyways, but I do see his point.

"Can we find a surgeon?" I asked tentatively. Greiger's most likely bleeding internally, and we'd have stop the bleeding somehow. Laparoscopic procedures is presumably too much to ask for, but I would really feel more comfortable if somebody double-checked whether that broken rib is poking a hole in his kidney.

"Open him up?" Vincent asked callously, "he wouldn't survive it, he'd lose too much blood."

I almost laughed at the irony.

"Leave me," Greiger repeated irritably, "I will recover." Was it just me or did his pulse get a little weaker?

"You get used to these things in the Satellite," Vincent tried to console me, looking at Greiger like a lost cause, "and who knows, he still has a fighting chance."

"Where's your contact with Goodwin?" I finally asked, I didn't like to reveal my knowledge of his real identity, but the alternative was his almost-certain death. Though Satellite might be helpless to treat his injuries, it would hardly be problem in any modernized city.

Greiger's pupils dilated a little further, "how did you know about Goodwin?" The question elicited another bout of hacking coughs.

"I know things," I replied drily.

Greiger closed his eyes, my breath hitched for a second before I realized he was just signaling the conversation was over.

"Look," My patience waned, "I doubt the good Director would hold up his end of the bargain if you didn't go back, dead or not, then your entire village can wait for their hope to never return."

"There's nobody," Greiger looked at me again, panting a little at the prospects I described, "He would send for me in two weeks."

I clicked my teeth together in frustration, "Chaos, find Akiza, will you?" I decided. "Or find Yusei and get him to find Akiza."

Chaos nodded, "what for?"

"If I'm going to send somebody back, might as well get three for the price of one."

"Three?" Vincent asked disbelievingly, already knowing the answers "Greiger, Akiza. And?"

"You need that thing sewn up, and probably tetanus shot," Just to be on the safe side.

"You think I'm going to come back?" Vincent gnawed on the end of his still blood-stained ponytail.

"If you don't want to come back, then I don't want you here," I smirked, as long as any member of the Magicians is still stuck in the Satellite, he's not going anywhere.

"I'll let you know," the red-head sent me a half-hearted glare.

Though a more serious problem does present itself. Now that sneaking _to_ Domino is no longer a problem, it'll be a challenge to keep people in the Satellite. I had been hoping my crew won't realize it until at least a couple days later, so I'd have some time to think of… something.

* * *

"Kalin," Roman Goodwin looked down at his protégé, "You sent the Satellite girl to Domino." It wasn't a question and Roman didn't disguise it as such.

"I," Kalin paused, uncertain how much Roman knew or suspected, "Yeah, I sent her to see how Jack is doing." He didn't need to fake the disdain in his voice. While he directed most of his anger towards Yusei, the resentment he held towards the other members of the Enforcers were entirely genuine.

"We have more important things to do, the Final Battle fast approaches," Roman's eyes flickered. When Dark Signers are turned, Roman instills into them their primary target for revenge, but that's not to say they can't be swayed by further rhetorics, as he feared Kalin had been.

Kalin shrugged, leaning back relaxed as he regained his bearings, "I wanted to check up on the man who defeated Yusei and kept him on the ropes for the last two years. If it weren't Jack, I'd thank him."

"Restrain your curiosities," Roman stared into the burning candle, "You'll meet him in battle soon enough."

"Something to look forward to," Kalin bared his teeth as he envisioned eviscerating Jack and Yusei in a duel, the influence of the Ruler of the Underworld is strongest beneath the abandoned Momentum Reactor.

Roman looked at the younger Dark Signer and the shadows that occupied his eyes. Perhaps he was being paranoid, nothing had changed in the Satellite for over a decade, surely

* * *

"Good, I've been looking for you everywhere," Nervin found me when I wandered through the factories (now pleural), thinking of something seemingly important to occupy my crew until I can find a reason to keep them in the Satellite.

"For me?" I looked at him curiously. Nervin had largely dealt with the technical side of things, where I certainly wouldn't know anything he didn't.

"It's Zigzix," Nervin sounded annoyed, rubbing his bloodshot eyes, "I can't deal with him anymore, you talk some reason into him or get somebody else to babysit the Domino City expert."

"I thought he'd be helpful?" I asked as he pushed me into Zigzix's office. Yes, Zigzix has an office, as does Nervin. I don't even have an office.

"Yuki-sama!" Zigzix's eyes lit up as he saw me, "I need to go back!" Nervin sighed in an 'I-told-you-so', kind of way.

"I'm sorry about getting you here," I began, and was cut off immediately.

"I thought I could survive without Momentum, without its perfect circuits and rotations and turns, but I can't! I need see its impeccable gyrations again, I could stare at it turning all day! But I can't work with all this, this _linear_ machinery," Zigzix gestured disdainfully towards the machine designs, jumping off the giant hamster wheel he had been quietly running in.

It was Galen's idea, and Zigzix loved being able to physically cause things to spin. It's kept him busy and active, so I approved it. Secretly, I thought it was brilliant.

"I can never understand his fascination," Nervin grumbled into my ear, "What can the Momentum possibly do that's worth being so obsessed with?"

"The great Momentum goes round and round, it can do all!" Zigzix protested, obviously having heard Nervin's comment, "It supplies Domino City and beyond! It is the life of industry, the blood of the economy! It fuels production, it powers growth, it cleans the land and supplies the population!"

"He should've been a poet," Nervin commented with a sarcasm rarely seen in him, Zigzix must have really gotten on his nerves these past couple of days, and I can see why.

Zigzix immediately looked downtrodden, "I might as well be, now that you took me away from its power and its amazing spin!"

"Are you saying," I asked, ignoring all the superfluous information, "the Momentum can clear pollution from the land?" Considering that vast, _vast_ majority of global arable land has been polluted, this is critical information.

Zigzix nodded.

"Can it clean all of Satellite?"

And the rest of the world?

Nervin's eyes shot towards Zigzix faster than you can say pollution, if gazes had an intensity, Zigzix would have been sublimed from where he stood.

"That's crazy," Zigzix, yes the spin-spin-spin Dr. Zigzix said that. "We still need to power the City, or even the duel disks won't work, then Momentum can't spin fast enough! Unless you have another source of enerD that helps Momentum spin faster!"

Zigzix twirled around compulsively as he spoke.

"How much energy are we talking?" I asked hopefully.

The human race had destroyed most of the cultivatable land in the world, to the point that almost all of its (now-limited) population are eating the cubes I deemed battery acid, so every little bit of improvement would help.

"Director Goodwin took office ten years ago," Zigzix stopped spinning, but his eyes kept darting back to his wheel, "Since then, we've used all the extra energy from the Momentum to clean up his garden."

A collective sigh fell through the room.

"About 20%. And he's garden's about 10 acres? May I Yuki-sama?" Zigzix looked at the hamster wheel (exercise wheel, yes, exercise wheel) longingly.

"Yeah, of course," I waved him off and he hopped into the hamster, I mean exercise wheel again.

So the amount of energy needed to power a metropolis like Domino for a year will only remove pollution from about 8 acres of land.

That's not even enough to feed me. Probably.

I'm actually not sure because I have no idea how large an acre is.

The point is, it's not enough for anything practical. Oh well, back to the drawing board.

"Then, how about you work on something that spins?" I suggested instead, realizing it was the right thing to say by the look on his face. "Maybe some sort of construction vehicle? We need to fix the roads in the Satellite."

"Yes!" Zigzix jumped into his seat, taking a piece of paper and began drawing, "yes! Right away, the wheels shall spin again!"

But he looked so _sane_ the first time I met him.

"He's been getting worse since he got here," Nervin explained quietly, lowering his voice so he didn't disturb Zigzix, "The hamster wheel helps for a while, but it didn't last long. Oh, and he's in your hands now, you babysit him."

I looked at Zigzix and sighed, if only it were this easy to occupy all members of my crew. I need to think up something fast, or I'll have nobody left by the end of the week, my 'somehow-defeat-the-Dark-Signers-with-Exodia-decks' plan really wouldn't work without help. Heavy machinery, select weapons and help.

* * *

.

 **A/N:** I've been wondering if I have too many things happen per chapter…

I've also been re-watching Sherlock, which, of course, makes me _despair_ over my own writing, but as the duel was half-finished, I was obligated to upload this chapter (relatively) quickly.


	25. Teenage Angst

**Disclaimer:** I do not own YGO 5Ds

* * *

I eventually found myself sitting at the bottom of the stairs near the front door, staring at nothing in particular, as Chaos got ready to go find Yusei and Akiza, with Nervin sitting in the backseat.

"You wanna come?" Chaos invited lightly, like he's not going to find a young woman with more firepower than a squadron of Navy Seals.

"Sure," I agreed.

Chaos has the negotiating capacity of an actual seal, and I don't even know what Nervin's there for, so at least if I was there… I could witness the damage as they're being done.

"Are you sure?" Nervin asked, "She did just try to kill you."

"Which is why we should get this done before the fear catches up with me," I grinned as I took a seat next to him.

"Is that necessary?" Nervin asked again, his reluctance only piqued my curiosity.

"Oh I have nothing else to do," I assured him with a smile, "as long as you guys don't mind me tagging along, it's not every day we get to see the Black Rose without being attacked."

"Get on," Chaos didn't notice our little disagreement, "Let's get this over with."

The purple-haired duelist knew very well the location of Yusei's hideout, seems like the only people who didn't know about it was Sector Security. He took us through the tunnels and stopped beside Yusei's 'living room'.

Personally, I thought it was an unacceptable breach of privacy.

"Yusei?" Chaos asked quietly, as though afraid of waking a particularly dangerous animal.

Apparently not quietly enough, the only person in the tunnels was Akiza, she turned around and examined each of us in turn, her eyes eventually focusing on me.

"Yusei left to test his duel runner," She gave us a twisted smile that had both Chaos and Nervin reaching for their guns. "But I'm glad you came. It saves me the trouble of looking for you."

The three of us instinctively backed away.

Akiza didn't even bother saying the spell, she waved and sparks of fire danced around us dangerously, keeping us in place.

"Remind me why we came here again?" Chaos muttered, asking nobody in particular.

"So we could get rid of a ticking time-bomb in the Satellite," Nervin answered anyways.

"We come in peace," I raised my hands above my head.

In hindsight, we really should have made sure Yusei was inside before barging in like this. (Again illustrating the importance of doors).

"Get them to drop the guns then!" Akiza demanded, her hazel eyes now flashing scarlet, she looked ready to change into Black Rose at any second.

"Not gonna happen." I lowered my hands, slowly retreating towards the duel runner with Chaos and Nervin.

"Don't move a muscle!" Akiza ordered, "Do you really think you could get away from me?"

I stopped. She had a good point. None of us were carrying heavy weapons. I glanced at Chaos, he shook his head almost imperceptibly. Chaos still had his gun trained on her, but I doubt it would do much good.

"Akiza," I tried to talk her down, which, in retrospect, wasn't one of my strengths, "You don't want to do this."

"How do you know what I want?" Akiza demanded angrily, "People like you will never understand," She paused, her large brown eyes sparkled with something that looked suspiciously like tears, "I just want a normal life like everybody else, but I can never have one. No family, no friends. And now, I'm trapped in the Satellite, separated from everybody I ever knew, with no way to get back! Don't you dare say you know what that's like!"

"Oh I really think I do." I couldn't resist the sarcasm, it's a problem of mine. "Let's see, you feel like you're stuck in a world that you don't belong? Cut off from people who care about you? Surrounded by strangers of dubious virtues, no offense," I smiled apologetically at Chaos and Nervin, "You're essentially living in a dump- again, no offense guys. Your entire life was turned upside down by a bizarre twist of fate? I think I can imagine what that's like."

"But you have people to help you! You have friends so you can be happy no matter where you are or what you have!" Akiza protested in a typical Akiza fashion, a little naive and backed up with a frightening amount of firepower.

"Oh wake up and smell the industrial waste! Look around, you're in the freaking Satellite, we don't have for sentimentalities!" I pulled on my hair in frustration. "Pick anybody, chances are, half their friends are died. Why do you think I'm not having a mental breakdown every single day? My hell is their life and your life would be their wildest dreams!"

Akiza was stunned into silence by my outburst. "What about your life?" She asked curiously after a pause.

"Well," Frankly, I had been trying to repress those memories since I got here, to prevent having any of the aforementioned breakdowns, "I guess my life was what you dream about." Akiza didn't notice my choice of verb tense.

"With family and friends?" She asked tentatively, I nodded. "No wonder you're so well balanced."

Well, that's definitely not a compliment I've received before.

"Then let's how you do when you're cut off from all your friends and people who loved you!" Akiza's expression suddenly darkened as she reflected on her own life. She allowed the magic to flow through her and cackled. I'm not kidding, she actually cackled.

I wanted to explain how I was already cut off from all my loved ones, but before I had the time, giant vines rose out of the ground, twisting and turning until they formed a giant cage, sealing Akiza and I inside, the vines continued to grow until we were completely cut off from the outside world. The YGO series generally prefer blatantly obvious representations of character psychologies.

"Don't you love it? To be in their loving embrace." Akiza raised her arms to welcome the vines that wrapped tenderly around her arms, "My garden always protected me. For a long time, it's the only thing I could count on to protect me. Plus, with my Black Garden on the field, you're all alone too. I think that evens the playing field, don't you think?"

"How, exactly?" I asked rhetorically, pissed, terrified, but still marveling at the cage made of plants that grew at her will. I wonder if you could eat it.

"Now you don't have your friends to help you," Akiza explained, seemingly reasonably, "And I don't have any friends to help me. So we're even."

"Help?" I repeated sarcastically, "Really? You want help? Why do you need help? You're possibly one of the most powerful human beings on the planet! You can literally make something out of nothing! You can fight a tank and win, you can probably fight a battalion of tanks and win! What do you need help with? Laundry?"

"So just because I have this stupid mark, just because I have these stupid powers, everybody thinks it's okay to leave me out in the cold? Alone and soaking in sweat, blood and tears!"

Probably the sweat, blood and tears of the villagers after she destroy their homes like an evil dragon, I thought. Thankfully, I had enough self-control left not to say that, and chose something less scathing instead.

"I can see that you're angry with the world, what I can't understand is why," I said instead. "You have all of duel monsters at your disposal! You could nuzzle up to tigers, play with pandas, you can have a pet dragon if you wanted. You can't have a pet dragon and be angry at the world at the same time. Me, for example, I'm angry at the world right now because I don't have a pet dragon."

I want my pet dragon.

"If you think I was so lucky, would you trade with me?" Akiza demanded.

"I'm sorry?"

"If you think it was so lucky for me to have powers, if you think my life was that great, would you trade your parents for them?" Akiza repeated her question.

"God no!" I laughed at the idea, "Don't be ridiculous. I mean-, okay, I see your point."

Would I trade a half-decent childhood, a reasonably well-established personality and everybody I loved and loved me for superpowers. No. No I wouldn't. I have too much to lose.

"You take these things for granted," Akiza smiled sadly, "The things I can only dream about. Having somebody by your side, a shoulder to cry on. Having any friend at all who you can count on! I don't have any of that and I never did! I'd trade all my powers for your friends in the Satellite."

"Friends? In the Satellite?" It felt a little odd as it rolled off my tongue, I realized I rarely ever referred to these people in the Satellite as 'friends', even in my head, "…I guess?" Being stuck in the Black Garden does have its advantages, I felt safe from prying eyes, if not safe from the insane woman with magical powers who I'm currently playing a card game with.

"Aren't they your friends?" Akiza looked noticed my hesitation and asked again, her voice a mixture of curiosity and resentment. "People who like you and would help you at least?"

"They…" I hesitated long enough that, had we been outside, even Chaos would have noticed, "I don't know, depends on what you mean by 'friends' I guess." I paused and tried for a less confusing answer, "They like what I can do, for them and for the things they care about. They like what I represent, or what they think I represent at any rate. They may even like my actual goals and plans. And that makes up a large enough part of me that I consider them to like 'me'."

"And without any of that, they wouldn't like you?" Akiza's voice was a mixture of awe and sympathy.

"Without any of that, I don't think I'd like myself very much." I smiled, "I'm not even sure I would be me anymore. Akiza, you really have to stop separating fundamental parts of yourself from, well, 'You'. Your friends like certain aspects of you for whatever reason, there're probably reasons why _you_ like yourself if you think about it, and that's fine. We all do that, it's part of being human."

"I wouldn't know," Akiza lamented "I never had friends before, or liked myself."

The last part stung a little.

"Akiza, let me in!" Yusei's voice drifted from the outside.

"Look Akiza," I was glad to drag the conversation onto another topic, it was getting a little uncomfortable for me."These barriers you put up, you don't need them anymore. But if you don't start letting people in, you might not get a chance like this."

Akiza tilted her head, looking longingly at the sound.

"Akiza, please! I'll get you out of the Satellite, you'll have to trust me! This isn't who you are!" Yusei's voice rang clearly from the outside.

"Well?" I arched an eyebrow at the now-flustered redhead. "If you want friends, Yusei is really your best bet. You don't meet a lot people like him you know, and if you push him away, he might not come back.

"He won't?" Akiza looked panicked for a second.

"I will help you, but you'll have to let me in!"

"I activate the effects of Black Garden," Akiza listened to Yusei's words from across the wall, which I admit, did sound a lot more convincing than my own. Then again he wasn't fearing for his life, "And send everything on the field to the graveyard."

At her words, the cage of vines surrounding us collapsed, her monsters disappearing again.

Perhaps more importantly, a tornado appeared in the underground subway tunnels.

A tornado appeared in the completely sealed compartment within the underground subway tunnels.

Physics be damned.

As soon as the cage collapsed, Yusei rushed to Akiza's side, completely overlooking me, the obvious victim of the situation. Yusei looked so cute when he's hovering over Akiza like nothing else in the world mattered, I just want to put a leash on him and lock him in my backyard forever.

I will admit to being a little jealous.

"Will you help her get out of the Satellite?" Yusei turned to me and asked naturally. I suspected that in his mind, by transitive property, all of Nervin's friends are naturally his friends and therefore would help him, no questions asked.

I have only one condition, I need to know Sayer's plans." I replied.

Akiza hesitated, "I can't betray Arcadia like this."

"Have you considered, you know, leaving Arcadia? It's obvious that Sayer doesn't exactly care about you, or he would've gotten you out already. Why do you still help him?"

"He does care about me," Akiza argued.

'Just not enough' were the words that lingered in the air, "Nobody had ever given me a helping hand until I met Sayer!"

"Tell me about his plans to attack us then," I relented. Arcadia wasn't exactly my problem, and it's a little beyond my reach at this point.

"I don't know much," Akiza nodded in agreement, "I'm not the only one he has, but I don't know who else there is. Sayer wouldn't just give up though. He sent me to destroy the Zephyrs, now that I failed, he'll send others."

"Yes… Tell me, does Sayer have a plan to attack the Sector?"

"Not that I know of," Akiza replied uncertainly.

"Perfect. We'll say any Arcadia member trying to sneak into the Satellite is trying to attack it."

"I just told you that Sayer isn't planning to attack the Sector."

"But Sector Security doesn't know that." I gave her a disparaging look.

"He could tell them," Akiza argued, "Why should they believe you?"

"Are they going to believe the people who heroically stood up and stopped the last attack," Akiza had the good graces to blush, "or the crazy businessman trying to sneak people into the Satellite?"

"So there's no way for him to get around it?"

"Of course there is. These kinds of rumors will even die down on their own if given sufficient time, but that's what we need, time."

Yusei gave me a sideways look, presumably skeptical over why I needed to buy time.

"Let's go then," Chaos prompted. "We shouldn't keep Vincent and Greiger waiting."

I didn't need to be psychic to know that he was worried that Akiza might turn crazy again.

"We should finish the duel sometime," Akiza offered, having somehow wrapped her arms around Yusei's without him noticing.

"Let's not." I grinned, "You enjoy it, don't you?"

"Enjoy what?" Akiza asked.

"Dueling. Victory, destruction, control, inflicting pain," I ripped open her mask of vulnerability to reveal the real Black Rose inside, the young woman who could conquer cities.

"I-" Akiza wanted to agree but stopped when she saw Yusei beside her.

"Oh there's nothing wrong with that," I assured her, tilting my chin in Yusei's direction, "But you really should find somebody who doesn't mind."

"Yuki!" the crab-haired duelist protested loudly, turning his whole body towards me so he didn't have to look Akiza in the eye.

Not that would be a problem, Akiza was busy looking at anything but him at the moment.

* * *

After sending off Akiza, Vincent and Greiger, the first satellites to go to Domino in two years (except those invited by Sector Security of course), Galen, Chaos, Nervin, Blizzard, Cyril and myself sat down to discuss the real problems.

"In conclusion, the essence of industrialization and indeed the modern era is to improve productivity per capita, in order to increase maximum consumption per capita, or what we otherwise refer to as living standards. To that end, infrastructure is the foundation of industry and commerce, and therefore more than deserving of our attention and resources." Nervin finished with a sweeping bow.

I clapped, and glared threateningly at everybody else until they clapped too.

I had asked Nervin to prepare that speech to convince everybody to turn their attention to construction. Now that the pier is available, the next natural step is to move everything out, and for that, we need real roads.

"What was glasses going on about?" Chaos asked as though he didn't hear a word my engineer said in the past five minutes.

"I want to build a road from here to the pier," I summarized simply.

Note to self, no more prepared speeches, or at least don't let Nervin prepare them.

"Oh." Chaos nodded dumbly, "But there is a road, we took it today."

He of course, was referring to the trip that would have been considered extreme motorcycle parkour in my previous reality.

"I agree," Cyril concurred, "With Chaos I mean. Why do we have to build roads? It's going to be a huge waste of money. Plus, isn't that Domino city's job?"

"Trying to fix up the Satellite would only attract more attention from Domino," Blizzard added cautiously, "And that never leads to anything good."

All true, I admitted, but there's a bigger problem.

"The reason we, um," I chose the verb carefully, flashing Blizzard an apologetic smile, "occupied the pier, is to move products outside, we can hardly do that given the road conditions here."

"We had no problem getting to the pier today," Chaos replied, completely ignoring the rooftops and subway tunnels we took in the 12km trip, "why do we need to build something new?"

"It's a matter of cost," I sighed. Nope, he definitely didn't hear anything Nervin said earlier. "It's too expensive trying to get electronics across Satellite... terrain." And of course, by road, I mean a strip of flat-ish dirt,

"It's still be cheaper than building an entire road," Cyril said confidently, he's been track of our finances.

"The way I see about it, we have two choices. We could pay minimum wage, haul products across Satellite, making what money we could. Eventually, we'll go to Domino with whatever money we made, leaving the rest of the Satellite in exactly the same position as before."

Cyril grumbled, obviously anticipating what I was about to say.

"Or we invest in actual infrastructure so more businesses than our own would be possible here, and see where that takes us."

Chaos' eyes lit up.

"Of course, to guarantee the safety of the road and transports, we'll need a security force." I looked across the room, "Galen, will you head that up?"

"Huh?" Galen started, he had dozed off while Nervin was talking. "Sure! Of course! What was it again?"

Cyril still looked unconvinced.

"So we'll just waste our own money to do Domino's job?"

"The area around the road will have just become prime real estate property." I shrugged, that's the real source of profit.

"And what makes you think it would be under our control?" Cyril asked skeptically.

"That's why we have a security force." I dismissed his concerns. "In any case, we'll start the designs tonight. Let's meet up tomorrow and see what Zigzix can come up with in the technological department."

A couple of roads (or in this case, one) might do more good for the residents of the Satellite than even opening it to Domino corporate interests. Even if the idea fails, this noble cause should keep them busy until the end of the Dark Signer arc at least. I smirked to myself.

"So," Blizzard whispered to Cyril hesitantly as the two started walking away, "The decision was made based on majority rules? But what about the people who aren't here?"

"Whatever gave you that idea?" Cyril didn't bother whispering, "The decision was made based on Yuki's rules, they always are."

"Then these meeting?" Blizzard prompted.

"One of her quirks I think," Cyril shrugged, "It's easier just to go along with them."

* * *

 **A/N:** Seeing as this is a first person story, I feel obligated to mention that, as may become more apparent in later chapters, Yuki's views, social, economic or otherwise, does not necessarily reflect those of my own.

 **A/N 2:** This is the majority of my rants about Akiza the character. It's not that she's not justified in her pains, it was just odd that she chose to take it out on Yusei, an orphan in the Satellite who never had a fraction of the opportunities she had. And also she had superpowers! Superpowers! Why would anybody want to give that up?


	26. Fast Forward

**Disclaimer:** I do not own YGO 5Ds

XXXTHIS IS A DIVIDERXXX

The next ten days flew by.

Zigzix's technological expertise, coupled with a transportation route outside, seemed to suddenly put our operations on the fast-track.

Each day felt like an eternity, but looking back, the entire week was a blur, probably due to the lack of sleep, which I racked up 42 hours of in the ensuing week and a half. At this rate, I'll never grow past 5'.

I had naively thought that I would need to make up some work to keep my crew busy for a while, to keep them from immediately fleeing to Domino City. Ah how I miss that naivety.

Taking the boats we 'repossessed' and following the shoreline (because anything further requires a GPS system which requires satellite access), our teams scoured the country. Galen and Vincent went north, Teddy and Chaos went south to promote and sell our now numerous lines of consumer electronics. Yes, Teddy, the 14-year-old who was still learning to read, that's how short-handed I was. Though to be fair, team selection were as much based on their likelihood of coming back as actual skill.

Given the shortage of experienced and literate staff (only Nervin and I from the original crew), Ara and Blizzard had largely taken over operations inside the Satellite. I trust both of them completely, despite knowing next to nothing about them. Being wanted by Arcadia and Domino respectively, they have nowhere else to go.

Cyril is keeping an eye on that as well as recruitment, so... Nothing major had gone wrong that I know of.

Felice somehow managed to straighten out Adaros enough to keep ships moving despite Arcadia's influence. I didn't ask how she did it, just like I didn't ask why she wanted Vincent's rocket launcher or whether the blood on her clothes were hers.

Even Crow had been promoted to full-time babysitter, technically vice-principal of our elementary school (elementary school because everybody over 12 was participated in at least some sort of work-study arrangement rather than going to school- yes, yes, I know I'm going to hell).

Me? I got into construction, a field I frankly never thought I'd be involved in, thanks to: Professor Zigzix's Ultimate Road Warrior, patent pending.

Full disclaimer, he named all his inventions himself.

It's a three part machine that, when driven across untamed terrain, levels the soil, builds a foundation, and lays the cement or petroleum, up to 8 lanes wide and 5 meters deep. For best results, combine with Professor Zigzix's Road Scout, removing all hazardous obstacles above and below ground; Professor Zigzix's Road Armory, supplying materials to the Road Warrior; and Professor Zigzix's Sidewalk Defender, which builds the sidewalk and seals the sides of the roads.

Professor Zigzix's Road on the Go, designed for the conqueror, I mean infrastructure enthusiast in you. Each sold separately, also available for rental, some conditions and restrictions apply, see website for details.

Sometimes, I wonder if Zigzix should be the main character, an idea that's equal parts intriguing and terrifying.

I had started with a straight road from our location to the pier, which was apparently a bad idea, due to minor details like underground bomb shelters and the weight-bearing capacity of the ground when the soil had been dug out from under them.

The Satellite now has several convenient entrances to the subway system, in case we ever wanted a subway.

On the plus side, nobody has dead yet. A couple of severe injuries mostly related with our new 'subway entrances', which eventually prompted the kidnapping of multiple doctors and the establishment of a hospital, but no deaths. Yet. I can't take all the credit though, at least half of that was luck.

Frankly, it's just a matter of time. Our staff roster have gone from the 'accident-prone' 300 to the current 'injuries-are-entirely-acceptable' 460 and projected to reach 'somebody's-gonna-die-eventually' 600 by next month. Even the people who knew what they were doing hadn't done it for the last 17 years, so like I said, the entire week was a blur, possibly due to my subconscious suppression of those memories.

Having been thusly occupied, you can understand my temporary disorientation when I saw the pretty ex-Adaros leader at my door on my one day off.

"Ara?" I asked begrudgingly, "What's wrong?"

I had had somebody to deal with visitors, I distinctly remembered. But the first one had an engineering background and is now managing a team of 40 people to build our second apartment complex (the first we built is now being used as a school because we forgot the plumbing system); the second one came from Domino City so Chaos took her as a guide when he left.

The third time I was careful to select somebody nobody else could possibly want, so I ended up choosing Lug, remember Lug? Lenny's barely-adequate sidekick? Anyways, Crow wrangled him out of my hands because he was literate. He's now teaching grades 1-3 languages and maths.

Also our school isn't exactly a chief priority at the moment.

"Sorry to bother you," Ara smiled apologetically, "Yusei Fudo left the Satellite last night and hasn't come back yet, I thought you'd like to know."

"Yusei? Left?" My eyes must have bulged out, all traces of sleep now scared off, "To duel Jack? What else do you know?" And more importantly, _how_ did she know.

"I'm afraid not much," she shook her head and her cerulean-colored hair literally rippled like in a shampoo-commercial special effect, "Felice said she'd send back whatever information she gathers by noon. Something wrong?" She asked at the mixed expression on my face.

"No, nothing," I denied it quickly.

When I first found myself stuck in the Satellite, the plan was to risk my life and escape to Domino on the night Yusei dueled Jack, taking advantage of the blackout somehow. Now I can get to Domino at any time, but there're too many things holding me back.

"And you came here to tell me that?" There's no way she could have known the importance of this information.

"Not quite," Ara messaged the bridge of her nose, "Yusei left last night, he was supposed to have come back this morning by boat, he's still not back yet. We think he's been captured by the Sector."

"By boat?" I repeated, now completely alert. The only boats Yusei could access from the Satellite were ours. "Who authorized it?"

"Nervin told me you did, the night you met the Black Witch?" She gave me a strange look, "Yusei was supposed to have come back by boat when the tunnel would be closed."

I felt the sleep-deprivation headache coming back.

Aiding in Yusei's escape back to the Satellite would turn the Sector against us, likely leading to the shutdown of our entire operations even without Goodwin's extra attention. We have already invested too much into the Development, and thus, unlike our protagonist, we can't just leave everything and rideals away.

Naturally, Nervin didn't ask me because he knew I would say no.

"At least he has a plan to come back," I chuckled.

The tunnel between the Satellite and Domino City only opens for three minutes a day. In the original anime, Yusei made no mentions of how he would return to the Satellite. Even if he managed to evade the capture and waited until night, he can't take the same tunnel without being caught by Trudge who just has to be waiting at the other end.

"Of course he would plan on coming back," Ara said confusedly, "He would be a wanted man in a completely foreign city with not even a penny on him- he might not last that long."

"Never mind that," I chuckled at the joke only I could understand, "What bring you here?" Ara wouldn't consider Yusei being missing my problem, no reasonable person would.

"Crow wants to go to Domino to rescue him," Ara sighed, "I'm not sure how long Cyril can hold him back."

"God," I rolled my eyes. "What about the school?" We have already recruited every literate person we know.

"He handed that over to Martha" Ara explained with a sigh.

Martha had been invited to run our hospital (is it still a hospital if over half of the staff is kidnapped?), I had made sure to only meet her once when she was recruited. Her uncanny (deliberate? subconscious?) resemblance to Whoopi Goldberg always made me uncomfortable.

"Nobody can run education and healthcare at the same time," I grumbled, "Not without ruining both."

"So?" Ara waited for me to continue.

"Let's go."

If our chief babysitter leaves, we'd have 60 kids running around on a giant construction site, even I knew that's a bad idea.

XXXFF NET HAS BEEN MYSTERIOUSLY AND RANDOMLY ERASING THE NORMAL LINES I INSERTXXX

"Brother," Rex Goodwin strode into Roman's lair as though walking into his own office and immediately took a seat at the Dark Signer table, an irony Roman did not miss. "How do you do?"

"I didn't call you here for pleasantries Rex," Roman paced around the room irritably. With every passing day, he feels his sanity slipping as the Shadows claimed yet another part of him. "Why have you not detained that satellite? She's just one more variable we cannot afford."

 _Pacing,_ Rex Goodwin scoffed inwardly, _Roman can barely control his own actions, he's lost it._

"I was told," he leaned back, a move that made the stone-carved chair look comfortable, "that she was there on your orders, to assess Jack Atlas. And possessed information she otherwise shouldn't have." He added at Roman's disapproving look. "It had been more than sufficient to convince me of the truth in her words, though judging by your reaction, I must have been mistaken."

"Don't play games with me Rex, "Roman Goodwin gritted his teeth in annoyance, he stopped directly behind his brother and leaned in, the whisper a quiet promise that echoed the underground lair. "You never like it when you lose, and you always lose."

"What games?" Rex Goodwin chuckled, completely unaffected by Roman Goodwin's fingers at the base of his neck, where it could snap his spine in a split-second, "Big brother, do you not trust me?" He asked with mocking indignation. "I'm wounded."

"How could I? Already, parts of this city is barely recognizable from your last visit. Isn't that what you wanted to do? Fixing the Satellite, standing up for the weak, change you can see." Roman leaned forward further, his breath caressing the back of Rex Goodwin's neck, "Ten years ago, you would've worshipped the ground she walked on."

"I'm not the man I was ten years ago Roman, you of all people should know that." Rex Goodwin's voice turned into steel, he stood up and brushed his brother's hand off him, "I'd check your own ranks if I were you, your Immortals may be omnipotent, but your own magic seems to have its limitations."

Roman's eyes flickered in the candlelight. "How's Yusei Fudo?" he asked, changing the subject.

"Rest assured, he's at our detention center right now." The younger Goodwin relaxed again, leaning against the table to face his big brother, "I'm sure you've seen last night's commotion, I'll send you a full report when I have it."

"And the Fortune Cup?" Roman pressed. He felt an instinctive disquietude toward the situation, exacerbated by the abnormal ascent in the powers of the Netherworld Ruler. "Are all the Signers assembled?"

"Of course," Rex Goodwin replied smoothly, "all possible candidates and disturbances will receive invitations they can't refuse. Victory is just a matter of time."

"We've gone too far to turn back Rex, so don't fail me now." Roman Goodwin said slowly, studying his brother carefully as though to etch him into memory, "And if I don't see you again until the final battle, good luck. The fate of humanity rests in your hands."

"And humanity shall flourish," Rex Goodwin replied in complete honesty.

From his hands will rise a superior human race, with him as its god of course. The current plebeian existence will be wiped from the memories of this planet like the dirt it is, and _humanity_ , largely gone from the current human race, will once again flourish.

XXXI DON'T KNOW WHYXXX

"Yuki-sama," Blizzard stood up as I walked into the now-empty factory floor, "what brings you here?"

I smiled and nodded to Zigzix exercising at the far side of the room. It always makes me feel better just looking at Blizzard.

At least I was feeling better until I spotted a figure in the corner of the factory.

"Yeag- I mean, uh, what are you doing here?" I asked looking at the Vice Director of Domino City, locked in one of our unused glass control rooms.

We have many unused control rooms right now, because half of the manufacturing line was torn down to provide the materials for Zigzix's Road Warrior ensemble. Of course, as were over half of the people we hired, so it all evens out.

Lazar mouthed something silently while clinging to the glass. I walked over and turned off the sound-neutralization system on the window.

"Let's me go you barbarians! You can't keep me here!" The clown-turned-politician pounded on impact-resistant glass with renewed energy.

For a second, I wasn't sure what to say.

"What are you doing here?" I repeated, asking the most logical question I could think of.

"Well, Ms. Tono," Lazar sounded vicious, almost victorious at my question, temporarily forgetting his current predicament. "I'm here to extend to you the invitations for the Fortune Cup, which will be in 10 days' time. Be sure you show up, if you don't want the entire Development torn down." He looked pleased with the pun.

"We have personal permission from Director Goodwin," I used the same bluff I used on the Sector, which was technically true, Rex Goodwin essentially wrote me a blank check in terms of permits. That, combined with the right money in the right pockets, had been enough to keep Sector Security away so far. Goodwin's plan was pretty clear, with my investmentd here, I'm tied down. And the more people I recruit, the more vulnerable I become. In his eyes at least.

"I'm sure the Director would be more than happy to withdraw these permits if he doesn't see you at the Fortune Cup matches." Lazar replied smugly.

"Hey Yuki," Cyril looked up at the sound of our conversation. Eagerly dropping the newest shipment records, he walked over from the other side of the room, his blue eyes nearly as bloodshot as my own.

"Are we keeping him here against his will?" I turned to the white-haired teen, feeling more amused than anything else.

"We _have_ been feeding him," Cyril replied defensively, "and he eats a lot!" He gestured to the pile of empty instant noodle boxes by the trash, "I gave him your share of the food by the way, I hope you don't mind."

"Not at all," I shuddered at the memory of these noodles. I'd much rather eat battery acid cubes, at least those you didn't need to chew. "But getting back to the point, _why_ are we keeping him here?"

"He _knows_ stuff!" Cyril replied excitedly, ignoring the glares Lazar sent him. I mean _really_ knows stuff! Like stuff that none of us knows!"

I must have looked as confused as I felt, because Cyril elaborated.

"Like how to allocate resources in fighting a fire, getting the upper hand over the Commercial Administration Department, appropriate education curriculums for illiterate adults, security force training protocol, international trade customs, loopholes in Neo Domino sanctions, logistics of water transportation, negotiating mortgage rates, maintaining a positive media and community presence, the optimal demographic of our workforce, streamlining hospital triage procedures- " Cyril counted off his fingers until he ran out, then started afresh.

I felt my migraine pulsing a little faster with every item on that list.

"Okay, okay, I get your point." I had to cut him off.

"You know, the stuff that none of us knows how to do." He finished.

"And he knows all that?" I asked skeptically.

"He knows _about_ them," Cyril replied, "and that's more than we do."

He was right of course, none of us, arguably with the exception of Ara, knew anything about management, or business, or politics or even geography, (which is very different from what I learned), and the list goes on. And on. And on. And on.

"You can't keep me here!" Lazar protested warily, seeing the gleam in my eyes. "Domino will look for me."

"No," I agreed, even an inept bureaucracy like Domino would react if its vice director was kidnapped by its own citizens, "but what do you say to a consultant job?"

A lot of politicians have consultant jobs in my previous reality, the only difference being, Lazar would actually be doing something useful.

"Not a chance!" Lazar rejected the idea outright.

"We'll pay you," I offered him the one thing I thought he couldn't refuse, money.

I didn't know much about Neo Domino economics, but I do know Lazar was living in the streets just days after leaving his job. Vice Directorships usually pay better.

Lazar swallowed, "you can't buy my loyalties," he sounded a lot less resolute this time.

"I don't want you loyalties," I replied sincerely, what the hell would I want his loyalties for? "Just your knowledge and experience, your expertise really." I said sincerely.

Management was much harder than I thought, so was coordination and logistics, something Lazar had more experience with than all of us put together. "How do you think we should deal with the tax revenue agency at Tokyo?"

"That _is_ very valuable information," Lazar nodded gaudily. "And very expensive."

"We'll give you ramen!" Cyril interrupted impatiently, I was about to tell Cyril off when Lazar nodded again.

"That would indeed be appropriate for my position as Vice Director."

I will never understand this world.

And I'm okay with that.

"Vice, vice director?" Blizzard interrupted incredulously. " _The_ Vice Director? Of Domino City?"

"Ah, finally, somebody who appreciates the importance my status and skill," Lazar stood up taller, sounding smug despite being stuck in a glass cage.

"Of course, Director Lazar, Lazar-sama," Blizzard nearly fell over himself rushing forward to open the door, and practically lunged towards the clown inside, "I'm flattered. It's truly an honor to meet you, I'm-"

I snickered. Lazar-sama. I mean yes, Lazar is the Vice Director of Domino, but I just never associated him with anything of, well, importance.

Lazar instinctively flinched as the blond approached, "What do you want?" he asked guardedly, shielding his face from any attack. It's unfortunate that Blizzard chose similar wording to mine when I first met Lazar, so he's sincerity didn't exactly come through.

"He wants nothing," I directed Lazar towards Cyril, "and _I_ want you to optimize our manufacturing team before you leave."

"I can't believe we're actually hiring Lazar." Cyril shook his head, "this is ridiculous, and getting more ridiculous by the second."

He gestured towards Blizzard, now clinging onto the man about half his size, layering on flattery by the bucketful. Lazar looked like he was on cloud nine, probably doesn't get a lot of people who took him seriously.

"You said you'd take anything that moves," I rolled my eyes, "and he would actually know what he's doing." Unlike the rest of us I mean.

"I'll take it from here," Cyril muttered disdainfully as he grabbed our lavender-haired visitor by the arm, dragging him away from Blizzard and towards the back office.

XXX

"So… Should I get Crow?" Blizzard asked sheepishly as he placed a cup of tea by my hand, a luxury item he acquired during his short stent as the leader of the Adaros.

I looked at the tea wistfully, I needed something _so_ much stronger.

"Where is he?" I asked, "I thought he'd be here, fighting Cyril tooth and nail."

"Crow and Nervin are with Martha," Blizzard answered, "Martha said she would keep Crow here until we could convince him to stay."

Martha. I shuddered.

"That's okay." I replied, not wanting to risk meeting Martha, it's freaky, okay?

"I already told Crow," Ara said calmly, "he should be here any second. I asked Nervin and Martha to stay and keep an eye on things at their end."

I smiled at her gratefully.

"Can you get in contact with Akiza?"

"Contact Akiza for what?" Crow barged in, "I told you that I was going to Domino to get Yusei out and that's final. Now tell Nervin to give me my engine back!"

So that's why he's still here.

"I think so," Ara glanced at him sideways, and answered my question, "do you need anything?"

"Tell her Yusei has been arrested," I grinned, "that's as much as I can do from here, let's see how this plays out."

"That's all you're going to do?" Crow demanded, sounding a little less angry.

"It's our best course of action," I replied, "Sector Security is just looking for a reason to shut us down right now."

Sometimes, we can't get the best of both worlds, and sacrifices must be made.

This is not one of those times.

"Plus, he's Yusei, he'll be alright." I added. Rex Goodwin is counting on it.

"I know Yusei can handle himself, but…" Crow trailed off.

"I must remind you that our priorities still lies with the Satellite," Blizzard replied icily, "We must discard our individual greed for the bigger good. It is our duty to fix the Satellite and feed the millions who struggle to survive within it."

I know he's defending me to make up for earlier, but frankly, he's overdoing it. _I_ don't even believe the stuff he's saying.

"I'll let Akiza know then," Ara said gently, "I'm sure she'll get Yusei out okay. And if anything goes wrong, we can go save him then."

XXXAND I DON'T THINK I'LL EVER FIND OUTXXX

 **A/N:** Sometimes, I wonder if the world is going to hell or if I'm just getting older and therefore more aware of everything that's wrong with it. At least infrastructure and economic improvement can be easy in fiction, or at the very least, I could choose not go into detail about the hard part.

 **A/N 2:** I love writing the Goodwin brothers, their methodical insanity just comes so easily to me.

 **A/N 3:** It remains difficult to make economical and social development interesting.


	27. Conservation of Energy

**Disclaimer:** I do not own YGO 5Ds.

 **A/N:** This is the first chapter title in a while that I decided on before finishing the chapter, yay!

When a larger atom is split into smaller atoms, a part of it becomes energy. This is what we call nuclear fission and is the basic idea behind both nuclear weapons and nuclear energy. That's all the science mentioned in discussing the Momentum, in case you're not familiar with the idea.

I realized that for an unspecified period of time, I uploaded the first chapter into this chapter. To anybody who read that instead of this actual content, I apologize.

* * *

Crow had left to babysit, Ara had left to sort out another accident, and I was hoping to leave too.

"Yuki-sama," Blizzard handed me a tablet before I could escape, "Nervin said you needed to finish with the promotions and assignments by the end of the week."

"Thanks," I grabbed it out of his hand, "I'll put it with all my other tablets."

Given the technology available, personal digital assistants have been extremely cost-effective to produce (vs paper, which was expensive) and soon became one of our core products. Storage though, remains a problem, so most of PDAs reserved for our own use only has room for a couple of assignments.

As such, our work tablets have no games and can't connect to Wi-Fi (also we didn't _have_ Wi-Fi), so as far as I was concerned, they were useless. As a result, they have been piling up on my desk, each with one or more things that I was supposed to do.

Looking at the stack of PDAs, I whimpered, and decided to take a nap instead.

We still didn't have a sofa, but the workbench is beginning to look very comfortable.

"Yuki?" The blue-haired ex-Enforcer who had disappeared for the past ten days entered the warehouse, "I thought I'd find you here."

"Kalin," I returned, "Thanks for nothing."

"What-?" Kalin blinked, not understanding my resentment at him having successfully and obliviously avoided the work that the rest of us had to toil through for the past week and a half.

"But now that you're here, we must make up for lost time..." I chuckled ominously, stuffing into his hands two of the many PDAs from my pile. "So we're planning on a second road that intersects the first roughly at a right angle to maximize coverage, find out where it's supposed to be."

"What are you talking about?" Kalin asked blankly.

"Design the second road," I pushed him to sit down at my seat, "It's gotta be in an area that we can control, and otherwise reach as many people as possible, per area constructed of course, so keep population density in mind. Avoid all bomb shelters, pipelines, major Sector patrol routes. Try not to have it cut through buildings," I added as a second thought, "but if it has to, that's fine, we'll deal with it."

"Wha-" Kalin sputtered.

Well, he wanted to fix up the Satellite, _this_ is fixing up the Satellite.

Not defeating vague, untold forces of darkness, but rather endless tedious paperwork, followed by a grueling execution process, followed by more paperwork.

"Yuki, stop joking around," Kalin ignored my annoyance, "This is serious."

I arched an eyebrow sarcastically and waited.

"Roman is suspicious of me, he's been acting strange for the past two weeks, I barely managed to sneak out today. Listen, there will be a war in the Satellite very soon, you need to get out of here, all of you, immediately."

"In case it skipped your attention, we don't have the luxury of moving around anymore." I gestured vaguely to my surroundings.

However, I _was_ concerned about giant monsters roaming the Satellite at the end of the Dark Signer arc, which really wouldn't help our (re)construction plans.

"This is serious!" Kalin sounded almost desperate, "Incredible powers will battle here soon, obliterating everything in their path."

"He's right you know," a portentously menacing voice came from the entrance. Roman Goodwin walked in a god stepping foot onto mortal realm. He stood at the doorway, casting a long shadow into the room, splitting the outside light into two as it entered the room (yes, we still rely heavily on natural lighting). When I first looked at Kalin, I felt like he would hide from the Light. But I suspected if it could, Light would hide from Roman Goodwin.

I looked at the approaching man with reluctant respect. Cutting off your own arm for the good of humanity is one of those things that automatically makes you a BAMF. Meanwhile, my hands still shake when I'm trying (and often failing) to pop zits.

Upon close inspection though, I couldn't help the question.

"Why does he have a mullet?" I asked Kalin, not bothering to whisper. Roman's intimidating expression froze. "I mean, isn't Roman Goodwin in his forties or something? And a mullet takes maintenance, who does he go to where he sits down at the barber's seat and be like, 'business in the front, party in the back'?"

"Dark Signers are technically dead," Kalin hid his laugh behind a forced cough and said as though it was self-explanatory, "his hair doesn't grow anymore, and his body hasn't changed since Zero Reverse."

"Immortality," I mused. If it weren't for the 'something else taking control of your body' thing, I'd be tempted. "I guess he doesn't shed either, else he'd be bald by now."

"Yuki Tono." Roman Goodwin interrupted, his eyes seemed to look through me at something far more powerful.

"Roman-," Kalin stepped up cautiously, temporarily at a loss to explain himself, then recovered quickly. "You said the fight is just between the Signers and the Dark Signers."

"This satellite is of no interest to me, I merely seek the source of your recent distractions." Roman's voice boomed through the empty warehouse (Blizzard ran as soon as he saw Roman, at least he took Zigzix with him), "But the time for words have passed Kalin, now is the time for action."

"I am prepared for the Final Battle," Kalin looked the leader of the Dark Signers in the eye, "I've been waiting to duel Yusei for the last two years."

"That's not enough, Kalin," Roman replied, "Not only do you need to destroy Yusei Fudo, you need to destroy him as an emissary from the Shadows, a true Dark Signer in both mind and soul."

"What do you mean?" I cut in, Roman's words gave me an ominous feeling.

"You need to refocus your energies," Roman approached Kalin slowly, I tried to pull Kalin with me as I retreated, but he was rooted to where he stood and refused to waver no matter how hard I pulled.

"You need to renew your beliefs," Roman reached a hand out to grasp Kalin on the shoulder, I let go and hastily backed away. Kalin remains frozen to the spot, I didn't need to see his face to know the vacant expression that comes from being brainwashed by Roman Goodwin.

"You were resurrected into the Shadows, let it wash over you, cleanse you of all these childish dreams and ideals. For in the end, only the darkness shall remain." Roman's free hand clutched Kalin tightly by the throat and lifted him up in the air, the younger man hang limply in his hands.

"Only then, shall you be reborn into your Destiny." After what felt like an eternity, Roman let go, dropping Kalin unsteadily onto his feet.

Kalin suddenly started, waking up from his trance. He shook his head like a wet dog, looking completely disoriented, "Roman? What are you doing here?"

"I came to make sure you're still one of us," Roman said like nothing had happened.

"Of course I am," Kalin replied naturally, I could only hear sincerity in his voice and Kalin wasn't that good a liar.

"What did you do to him?" I demanded.

"Yuki? What are you talking about?" Kalin asked me in the same easy tone, "Roman didn't do anything."

"I merely reaffirmed the beliefs he had from the very beginning, vengeance and justice." Roman said.

"You can't go on like this," I sighed, Roman was too far gone but maybe I could still get through to Kalin. I tried to hold on to his arm only to grasp thin air as the real Kalin appeared half a foot away.

"This whole 'serving an unknown monster from another dimension to get revenge' thing isn't healthy and you know it. I mean, it even _sounds_ fishy." From the point of view of an impartial observer, it really did.

"I've never been better, Yuki," Kalin's voice was beginning to regain its hyena-like quality, "this is what I've been waiting for all this time, to destroy Yusei for his betrayal!" He took a hard look at me, "I have enjoyed the time we spent together, but you're not going to stop me from fulfilling my purpose in life!"

"I don't want to stop you," I messaged my temples with enough force to bruise the skin, god I didn't have enough sleep for this, "you know I'm on your side. If you want revenge against Yusei, I'm with you all the way, but you have to let me free you from this Dark Signer thing."

"I don't need your help!" Kalin exploded suddenly, I just realized his sclera was pure black, though his iris remained the color of the sun. "I _am_ free! I'm doing exactly what I want to do!"

"And you can continue to do that," I assured him, "without the help of the Earthbound Immortals."

Kalin turned away from me, signaling the end of our conversation.

Oh well, it was worth a try. But I would be lying if I said I wasn't prepared for Kalin going crazy again.

But I wasn't too concerned. The anime was pretty clear on the next steps to take, I just have to defeat him in a duel and wait for him to be resurrected at the end of the arc.

Oh, and upon further examination of what plot I could remember, apparently nobody dies from a Shadow duel, you just get absorbed into limbo or something, and be released when Good eventually triumphs. How convenient.

"So, how 'bout we set up a time for a card game," I offered cheerfully, "Like now? If I win you go back to normal, right?"

"A duel with you is merely a waste of time," Roman said those words are a mere statement of fact, "Dark Signers' Fate is to carry out the Destined Battle between Light and Darkness, only after you become a Signer might you merit a duel." Rex has been trying to activate the mark of all Signers, Roman thought he'd lend his brother a hand. "And it's only fair to let you know, if you win, he dies." Roman continued impassively.

"Death?" I repeated, successfully masking my contempt at a 'magical death'.

"Indeed," Roman agreed, he then turned to Kalin "Given your recent incident+, I have made certain precautions for his protection in case his other opponents are not so careful as to ensure your survival."

Right, when Kalin technically didn't lose the duel to me two weeks ago. God has it only been two weeks?

"I installed a safety device on your duel disk that would detonate before you lose a duel, to ensure the destruction of your mortal body and therefore soul before it can be taken by the Shadows."

"Wait just a sec here," I interrupted hastily, "You installed a _safety device_ that would _blow him up_ before he lost?"

"It's the only way to protect his soul from the reaches of our Lord and Master should he lost another game." Roman replied without even looking at me.

It made sense, in a messed-up sort of way. If lose a Shadow duel really did send Kalin to Hell (whatever Hell is in this world), and killing him beforehand would prevent it, his 'safety device' is actually protective. Then again...

"And you serve this thing, why?"

"Leash your tongue, child!" Roman boomed. "You shall not display such disrespect for our Master!"

Kalin was pale after Roman's words but he looked resolute, "This is the path I chose, Yuki, let me finish it."

"I would, except then you'd be finished." I pointed out the obvious. "And your 'Dark King' isn't invincible, else it wouldn't need Dark Signers to do its biddings. There has to be another way."

"We mortals cannot even begin to understand the powers of these beasts," Roman sneered, both the iris and the whites of his eyes a solid black, looking a lot like he came from a 3rd-rate horror movie, "they have no form, they do not exist in the same plane as us, they are not even made of matter but rather of the darkest energies of the universe."

"Huh…" I paused, an idea was stirring furiously at the back of my head and I can't quite place it.

"If it's so powerful, where is it now?" I asked trying to hide my distraction.

"Our Ruler is sealed away by the Crimson Dragon 5000 years ago, but he would return and rule this world once again!" Roman replied quickly, obviously something he had rehearsed before.

"Sealed away you say?" I repeated slowly, finally getting a hold of the idea.

It was crazy, possibly my craziest idea yet and considering all the ideas I've have so far, that's really saying something, "In the Shadow Realm I presume. And it was sealed away or something so it can't wreak havoc in the Shadow Realm either?"

My heart pounded so hard against my chest I was surprised Roman didn't hear it.

"The bonds that contain our Dark Ruler weakens by the second," Roman sounded smug, "Soon he will again be free to roam this world and the next!"

"In other words not yet," I replied flatly, _be still my beating heart_ "Right now, he's still trapped, confined, vulnerable… Localized even."

"Our Dark King is never vulnerable," Roman completely missed the point of my comment, "at least not to mortals like us."

I nodded solemnly, acknowledging the powers of these beasts, "So the Ruler of the Underworld has no physical form and is made of dark energy?"

"And as such, he's beyond reproach by mortal means!" Roman replied indignantly.

"I see," I agreed, trying to lead the conversation without seeming too obvious, "The purest dark energy?"

"Of course," Roman looked a little suspicious, but I honestly doubt he'd guess my nefarious plans. "It is from the darkness that all life originated, and to the darkness they will return. The Ruler of the Netherworld is made of the essence of that Dark Energy."

 _Excellent._

You see, I came from an era where Energy is King, so you can't blame me for making the connection. The Ruler of the Netherworld is, if Roman spoke correctly, energy. It really doesn't matter to me what kind of energy, at the molecular level, energy is energy.

Normally, I'd have no use for that energy and there's nothing I can do to it – I have no way of storing or redirecting that amount of energy potential safely. But if what Zigzix said was true, the Momentum is capable of absorbing energy from mythical creatures to restructure the soil...

And we have a vast store of energy conveniently immobilized, we just have to get it across a measly dimensional barrier, and that's all that stands between me and real tangible food. (And a better world in general, but I wasn't thinking about that at the time)

I think it was Zigzix who said, in the original anime, that the Crimson Dragon had filled up the Momentum with enough energy to power Domino for 100 years just by showing up for like 10 seconds. Its arch nemesis, the Ruler of the Netherworld should be almost at powerful, so imagine the amount of energy we can get if we went straight to the source!

Forget Roman Goodwin, an army of Blue Eyes White Dragons wouldn't be able to stop me.

"Goodbye Yuki," Kalin smiled as he turned to leave, "and take my advice before it's too late."

He waited until Roman Goodwin started leaving before following behind.

I waved absentmindedly.

I wasn't entirely confident about my idea to use a monster destined to destroy the world as essentially fertilizer, but if nobody came from the future to try and prevent it, how bad could it be? After all, they tried to prevent duel monsters. The Crimson Dragon did request this 'war' be ended without relying on card games, I think this fits the bill.

Then again, I'm not comfortable with the idea of destroying the Ruler of the Netherworld like what happened in the anime, leaving this world with only Crimson Dragon as its unopposed God.

* * *

Waiting until the hopefully-soon-to-be-irrelevant Dark Signers to get out of sight, I raced back in search of Zigzix and Nervin, the two people in the Development who knows anything about technology (and I'm including myself in that statement).

I found both men with a frightened Blizzard in our first warehouse and current residence- good choice, it's probably the safest place we have. Blizzard had already hotwired Vincent's duel runner, apparently determined to bolt at the first sign of trouble.

"Scram," I glanced at Blizzard. Seeing whatever situation had obviously been resolved, he abandoned the duel runner and scurried out the door.

I took a deep breath and turned to Zigzix.

"You are aware of the power surge last night?" I asked a little awkwardly.

I knew all about the Dark Signers but my information came from a completely different source. The whole light and dark business remains a mystery for most of the population.

"You mean the Crimson Dragon?" Zigzix's red eyes practically glowed with excitement, "Of course I did! Oh it was everything Director Goodwin said it would be! Even from this distance, my satellite picked up incredible power!"

Satellite?

Hamster wheel, Nervin mouthed.

Right.

"If there's another monster like that, could the Momentum drain its energy?" I asked, fervently wishing that the Netherworld monster isn't omniscient, but I didn't want to talk in circles and risk getting something mixed up in communication.

"You mean like how we reconstructed the soil using energy from the Momentum so Director Goodwin could have a garden?" Zigzix asked innocently.

"You removed pollutants from the soil to make a garden for the Director?" Nervin interjected, recalling our previous conversation. "Then can you do the same for the entire Satellite? So the earth beneath us could again support life?"

"I don't see why not, as long as I drain enough energy from this monster you're talking about, I can do that for the entire world." Zigzix replied easily, "Or the Crimson Dragon would work too, or any other monster!" He suddenly got excited at the possibility.

"No, no, nothing except what I specifically tell you to target, okay?" Draining the Crimson Dragon thereby dooming the entire world is not exactly part of my grand scheme/sinister plan.

"Exactly _how_ does the Momentum work to eliminate pollution?" Nervin interrupted skeptically. He was obviously conflicted about restoring the machine that destroyed the city and creating a machine that, if Zigzix's words were to be believed, would restore mass scale agriculture. I don't think I can overstate the importance of that. I mean it's _food_ , all the more vital because we don't have much right now.

"Oh it's simple really," Zigzix grinned for the first time since I met him, ecstatic over the prospect of getting his Momentum back.

"As you know, the challenge in current pollution treatment is mostly radiation and heavy metals," Zigzix began casually.

I did not know that but sure.

"It's been a problem for centuries, but not anymore, thanks for Professor Fudo's Yusei particles!" The brunette continued. "These planetary particles can induce the heavier metallic elements to collide causing them to split up and become different elements, so they're no longer a source of pollution."

I ran his words through my head a couple of times- something felt a little off, but I can't be sure because I didn't really understand what he said.

"I'm most proud of our success in splitting lead into iron and calcium, both of which are natural, healthy components of the soil."

And that's when I understood what he was talking about.

"Nuclear fission! You're talking about mass-scale nuclear fission!" I screeched.

I haven't touched this stuff since high school, but 'splitting atoms' is really a dead giveaway.

Zigzix nodded with wide-eyed innocence.

"And you're using this kind of technology to clean Goodwin's garden?" I could have put hyenas to shame.

"I assure you," Zigzix looked confused at my (entirely justified) outburst, "The Yusei Particles create a very stable environment, we can control the energy absolutely and direct it anywhere we want. It's completely safe. We've been doing it for the last 10 years."

He sounded indulgent, like explaining why planes wouldn't fall down to a 5-year-old.

I wasn't comforted at all. The keyword in his sentences though, is _can_ , as in _do not have to_. I want a machine to destroy a powerful monster, not the rest of the world with it!

I grew up in a reality where most new advances in technology are immediately studied for its potential for killing the human race, so you'll forgive me if my thoughts naturally leaned in that direction.

If my memory serves, the lack of adequate raw materials (i.e. plutonium & uranium) is the main reason why most countries did not have nuclear weapons in my previous reality. There are no such restrictions for heavy metals like lead and gold. That means literally any comedic caricature of a cartoon villain (god knows there're a lot of them here) can built their own nuclear weapon using Yusei Particles, the science behind this is so simple even I knew it.

If I were on a 'the world must end' path like Roman Goodwin, I'd be really excited.

"Nervin, would you mind?" I gestured unsteadily towards the door, "Just make sure nobody's listening in on us."

The inside of the house is swept daily, but the outside remains a risk. More importantly, I didn't want Nervin to hear what I was about to say next.

The spider-haired man nodded understandingly, going out and closing the door from the other side.

"When you say _can_ redirect energy," I lowered my voice to barely a whisper as though the act would afford us better security, " _how far_ can you redirect it?"

I held out my hand in front of me and saw it shaking uncontrollably. Whether it was in fear or excitement, I couldn't quite tell. Yes, at least part of me was excited, namely the seven-year-old who wanted the rule the world.

"You mean weaponize it?" Zigzix replied didactically, blind to my growing agitation. "I suggested as much to Director Goodwin, but he rejected the idea."

Oh thank god! Good job Rex.

"I can't imagine why," Zigzix continued with the neutral tone of pure scientific curiosity, "An explosion could put half of Australia under water, or all of Southeast Asia if you'd like."

I'm not sure but I think we're in Southeast Asia.

Fear, I decided, I was definitely more afraid than excited.

The world is never short on crazy idiots trying to destroy it, especially not this world. The Dark Signers being shining examples right here in the Satellite.

With our new and improved Momentum, they don't even need a magical lizard or children's trading cards.

Nonetheless, this machine that could very possibly destroy the world might also be my best chance at defeating the Ruler of the Netherworld, the monster that would, one way or another, bring about the end of this dimension.

And I'll admit, I was really glad that there was an alternative to me risking my live six (seven?) times to defeat each Dark Signer.

"So how do we build the Momentum?" I asked, hoping this wasn't going to be one of those questions where future generations would point to when they're trying to pin point what destroyed the human race.

"Build the Momentum?" Zigzix repeated, dumbfounded, "Whatever gave you that idea? The Momentum was built by the Legendary Doctor Fudo, I can't possibly recreate his masterpiece! Or I would have built it weeks ago!"

"Then what was all this talk about Momentum for?" I asked irritated.

"Well," Zigzix coughed discretely. "If you could get the Momentum Core, that's the heart of it all," He gestured something slightly larger than a microwave, "Then I can build my, I mean our own Momentum! And I can see the magnificent machine again!"

He looked more excited than I did, which was a little disconcerting, since having our own Momentum literally meant I didn't have to risk death.

"You want me to steal the Momentum?" I repeated.

The machine that blew up half the city by accident and can sink half a continent if we put a little work into it? Neo Domino must guard it like nuclear launch codes. As you can imagine, it's fairly unlikely for a small local anti-government group to steal something that could destroy the world, and for very good reasons.

Wait, I corrected myself, he's not asking me to steal nuclear launch codes, he's asking me to steal the actual nuclear weapon.

"Do you have another idea?" I asked sarcastically.

"The Old Reactor would work too," Zigzix apparently didn't understand sarcasm. "It would be a little harder to remove, but I think I can manage."

The Old Reactor, aka the headquarters of the Dark Signers.

So if I want to avoid facing Roman in a children's card game that may kill me, I must first build the Momentum. To build the Momentum, I must first get into the Old Reactor by defeating Roman, the easiest way to defeat him is to face him in a children's card game that may kill me.

My mind got trapped in the spiral for a second before reasoning its way out.

"We'll steal it!" I decided, decisively if I may say so myself. How hard can it be to steal from a dead 40-year-old with a mullet? Even if he could summon magical monsters.

It might work, it might not, but it doesn't hurt to explore all my options when trying to prevent destruction of the dimension.

Although, if this does work and what I built to prevent the apocalypse ended up causing it like in some sort of twisted Greek mythology, I'm going to be very, very pissed off.

* * *

 _Congratulations! You have unlocked special ability_ : Destroy the World. _Continue?_

 **A/N:** Ahahahahahahaha.

This is the true origin of the story.

I did distinctly remember Zigzix's comment. And so when I saw the Goodwin brothers sacrificing themselves to destroy the Ruler of the Netherworld, I thought to myself, what a waste of perfectly good Dark energy. So this story came to me. :P

I realize nuclear fission may seem a little out of place in a fanfiction about card games, but I think it works pretty well with the general techno theme of the anime. And I had to weaponize the Momentum, I just had to! It was the only realistic thing to do.

And no, things wouldn't be that easy, obviously. What would be the fun in that XD

So let me know what you think, especially if you didn't really like it. I'm looking for feedback on this chapter.


	28. Meanwhile

**A/N:** This chapter has been changed because I realized that I utterly forgot about the rest of the world, a mistake the anime makes repeatedly, but one that I had been trying very hard to avoid.

* * *

First thing first though.

Yusei is due back in three days according to Ara and I needed to deal with Kalin before that.

The crab-haired duelist is like catnip to the ex-leader of the Enforcers, and if they dueled… Either Kalin loses and dies, or worse still, Yusei loses and we presumably all go to hell.

Keeping in mind, the Crimson Dragon is too weak to aid its agents in battle, but the Ruler of the Netherworld is not.

And that's why I was standing heroically (I imagine) in front of the iconic black D-Wheel, "Kalin, we need to talk."

The Ex-Enforcer wasn't hard to find. Believing themselves to be the top of the food chain, neither Kalin nor Demak bothered with disguises or hiding.

"As much as I enjoy our little chats," Kalin turned his bike to swerve around me, "I'm afraid now is not the time."

"Because you've got another duel to get to?" I challenged, grabbing onto the handle of his bike, "then I must insist we chat first." The more duels he had, I suspected, the crazier he got.

Kalin shook his handles a couple of times, childishly trying to shake me off, I stubbornly held on.

"This is getting stupid," he captured the situation perfectly "What do you want?"

"I need you to stop dueling and stop summoning the immortals." I told him flatly, "it's interfering with the timeline of our construction projects."

Plus, if he would agree to not duel Yusei, I might be able to destroy or at least weaken the Ruler of the Netherworld enough to turn him sane, thus avoiding the need for a duel altogether.

"My all-powerful monsters, who will eventually take over this earth, are getting in the way of your projects to fix up the sidewalk, and you want me to stop?" Kalin asked sarcastically, as though I was the crazy one.

So I answered in an equally sarcastic tone, "Your card games are getting in the way of roadwork, something that would actually improve this town. So yes, I do need you to stop summoning those monsters."

"Do you have any idea of the enormity of what I'm trying to do?" Kalin pressed.

"There have been many a fool who have tried to destroy the world," I grimaced despite myself, remembering the situation in the Satellite compared with my world.

"Some succeeded, most failed, but none of them ended well. I don't want you to become one of them. I'd much rather that you joined me in trying to save this world. As far as I'm concerned, it's messed-up enough as it is."

"I no longer care for this world," Kalin shrugged off my concern and my offer, "all that concerns me is my revenge against Yusei Fudo."

"Not true," I emphatically rejected the idea, "or none of our little chats would have happened. You risked your life to defend this city, now you're telling me you're no better than the duel gangs you defeated?"

"I have more important things on my mind now, like vengeance. I'm afraid words won't deter me." Kalin dismissed my accusation. "If you really want a duel, Yuki, become a Signer. Then I'll face you again in a game of life and death."

"Don't become a Signer, Yuki," he paused, his eyes turned from black to gold then back to black with traces of golden light still shining through, "I don't want to kill you, and you'll be miserable if you kill me." He struggled with the last part of the sentence, his own soul battling the darkness that controlled him. "So I won't. Unless you're a Signer, I won't duel you. Unless you're a Signer, you don't stand a chance. "

His eyes are really pretty like this, I lamented over the fact that after I defeat his Immortal, I'd never see his eyes like this again. Maybe he'd be willing to wear contacts?

"Did you forget our last duel?" I reminded him, amused. But since I'm not a Signer, I'll have to phrase this carefully, "I grow up in a world that believes mortals have unlimited powers and potential. Whether or not I have activated the Seal of the Crimson Dragon, I'm the same person I've always been, and no less threat a mortal than I am a Signer."

"There's nothing you can do to force me into a duel, Yuki." Kalin wrenched the control of his duel runner from my hands, ready to end the conversation.

"We'll see about that," I was once again amazed at how little these people thinks of actual humans.

"Tread with caution, you'll die if you lose." Kalin warned.

"And you'll be freed if I win." I continued smoothly, ignoring his surprised look. "You'll see. Your immortals are very vulnerable, one defeat and they're gone for good."

"I told you, I am free!" Kalin rebuked my claims, "This is what I want to do!"

"I have nothing against your plans for revenge," I assured him. "Let's duel in three days' time, after that, you're free to do whatever you want."

"This is an all or nothing duel then," Kalin smiled in a way I'd never seen before, malice radiated from every pore as he eyes went back to a deadly shade of black, "prepare for your doom."

"Don't forget," I reminded him, "Battle City rules, winner gets loser's rarest card."

"How barbaric," He decried, "but I guess my deck could use a little tune up."

Yusei would be back in 4 days, Vincent and Chaos would be back tomorrow, which would give us plenty of time to plan and plot- of course I wasn't going to duel somebody unprepared when they have Magic in their corner.

* * *

"Atlas-sama, you're pushing yourself too hard," Mina said for the sixth time that day, carefully putting another cup of coffee beside her champion. "You can't keep going like this. Can I get you some lunch at least?"

"Go away Mina." Jack Atlas ignored the plea like he did the rest and stared at his deck spread out in front of him. "There has to be something wrong," He muttered, "There has to be!"

His loss to Yusei had brought about this most recent bout of tantrums. Jack simply could not accept that the boy he beat with relative ease two years ago could defeat him now, possibly ending his reign over Domino City. Even though Yusei was in the Facilities now, thanks largely to Jack, the blond still sees his face every time he closes his eyes.

Jack had requested a large number of cards and locked himself in his penthouse, talking to himself and trying out new combinations for his deck. That was three days ago, and as much as Mina loved the man who she would always consider the King of Games, even she had to admit, he was beginning to smell.

Jack adjusted the balance of his deck again, taking out a Dark Resonator to add in Tuning instead. "It's not enough," Jack's glare could have lit his entire deck on fire, "it's not enough! I can't win with this deck!"

He swept his arm across the table, sending half of his cards flying onto the ground. A look of regret quickly flashed on his face at seeing his cards on the floor, immediately replaced by haughty resentment.

"Jack," Rex Goodwin cursed silently. Lazar hadn't come back from the Satellite yet, forcing him to deal with the numerous fits of an increasingly difficult Jack Atlas. Of course, Rex Goodwin should count himself lucky. After Seto Kaiba lost his first game, his emo period lasted months.

Goodwin bent down to pick up Red Dragon Archfiend from the ground, putting the card back into Jack's hand, "To be a champion, you must never give up. When things grow more difficult, it's your job to conquer these challenges rather than be conquered by them."

"Right now, I'm the challenge my opponents conquered," Jack replied, taking the card from Rex Goodwin's hand and the rest of his deck from Mina. "I'm going for a walk."

"Atlas-sama, where are you going? Wait for me." Mina chased after him, only to be waved aside.

"I'll be at the pier," Jack replied, the closest he'll get to a sincere thank you to Mina for picking up his cards.

Mina sighed. Jack needed his space and she would respect that. Hopefully, a little fresh air would help Jack get out of this rut.

* * *

Meanwhile, other people had arguably more pressing problems.

Akiza looked down at the letter in her hand. She had received it from a senior member of Sector Security normally above suspicion. Even Sayer had believed the officer came on Director Goodwin's orders, to check up on the participants of the Fortune Cup before its grand opening next week.

The message only had one line. 'Yusei was arrested'.

No date, no location, no signature. Her father would have called this the kind of messages good girls never received let along acted on. The redhead frowned at the memory of her father, then forced herself to concentrate again as she studied the building in front of her. She had traced Yusei's whereabouts in the past couple of days, which eventually led her here, the Domino City prison, commonly referred to as the Facilities.

She had no way to find Yusei within its walls of course, but that's not going to be a problem.

Not being able to ride a motorcycle, she instead rode Blue Rose Dragon out into the middle of the barren landscape. She smiled at the metal gates, her eyes gleaming with pleasure. Destruction did excite her and instead of fighting it, she was beginning to embrace the idea.

"Blue Rose Dragon, Swift Aero Blast!"

The other feathered reptile in her deck opened its beak to release a ball of energy that would have been invisible had it not for the ripples in the air. It hit the gates with a quiet _plop_ , followed by the fizzling sound of eroded metal.

A large chunk of the gates simply disappeared.

Satisfied at the commotion she caused, Akiza petted the reptile beneath her as she ascended into the air, beyond the reaches of whatever limited weaponry these guards at the prison had.

"I'm looking for Yusei Fudo," She announced to the gathering, gaping crowd below her. "I suggest that you hand him to me now."

She's beginning to enjoy this, the fear and reverence in their eyes, and a part of her hated herself for it.

"What are you?" A particularly fat man stepped out of the crowd and asked her.

Akiza decided that she wasn't going to dignify that with a response. Instead, her vines picked him up and flicked him back into the crowd.

"I'm looking for Yusei Fudo," She repeated, searching through the crowd. Many prisoners, largely ignored by the guards now, had gathered in the empty field in front of the Domino City prison to watch the woman attacking the Facilities. Seeing as the next several hundred miles is a desert, they have nowhere to run. Also there was a flying dragon hovering overhead, which is drawing everybody's attention.

"Akiza?" Yusei Fudo stepped out of the crowd. Staring up at the girl he took care of in the Satellite, who was now riding on a dragon, blasting energy balls like some sort of minor, evil demigod.

"Hey Yusei," Akiza's head poked out of her dragon, a broad smile on her face. Her eyes rested on the tattoo on his face, and her smile froze. For a second, Yusei thought she was going to attack the crowd. Instead, she smiled wider. "Com'on up, let's get out of here."

"I can't leave my friends behind," Yusei replied. He can only imagine what the warden would do to them if he left.

"Fine," Akiza had to remind herself that she liked Yusei because he makes friends with everybody. That does not mean she's not special to him. "Get everybody, we're going back to the Satellite."

She announced her destination with a naïve confidence.

X

"Yes, so I heard." Divine said into the phone, "No, no, not at all. Go ahead, you have my blessings." He chuckled as he hung up the phone.

Sector Security would need a lot more than his blessings if they want to go after the Black Rose. On the other hand, he doesn't actually think Akiza would emerge victorious against the ruthless machine that is Domino City government. Her monsters may be powerful, but she herself is very vulnerable, sooner or later she'll be captured, then he can play the savior.

Maybe he'll pick her up after she's been sent to the Facilities, the tattoo they give would be a constant reminder for her to never go behind his back again.

* * *

Carly drove towards the pier, grumbling all the way.

Stupid boss, stupid Angela, stupid viewers who don't like her work. Most of all, stupid her for accepting her newest assignment.

She had been so excited over her last assignment, the first time her boss asked her to write something instead of fetching coffee. It was a fluff piece on a puppy who survived a car crash, a simple story that, as her boss put it, 'even she couldn't get wrong'.

Hearing the news, Angela 'borrowed' her for the rest of the day, making her run errands till well after dusk. At the time, she thought Angela was just being petty. But later that night, her phone was ringing off the hook from prank calls, and the messaging software on her computer beeped constantly. Finally at 2am, she give up on her boss's request that she could always be reachable, and turned off both her phone and her laptop so she could sleep.

Carly was still yawning when she arrived to visit the dog the next morning. So when she left the car at the owner's driveway, she forgot to shift gears to 'park', leaving it at 'drive' instead. To make a long story short, there was a fluff piece in the paper the next morning about the puppy that survived two car crashes.

So that's why she was desperate enough accept the one assignment in the office that nobody else would take, "Recent Changes in the Satellite." She even got a press pass to leave Domino and everything. Of course, she's not going to, she's not _that_ desperate. She'll just go to the pier, look at the other side and interview people who were lucky enough to come back alive.

Nobody really cares what's going on in the Satellite anyways, it probably won't even hit print, just like everything else she wrote.

She turned sharply as a piece of debris fell right in front of her. No doubt something that happens regularly as she neared the only entrance to the Satellite.

"The Black Rose!" She heard screams all around her and the crowd quickly dispersed, running in the opposite direction. Her journalist senses tingling, Carly decided to take a chance and drove against the crowd towards the source of the commotion. People might actually read the story about the enigmatic urban legend that is the Black Rose, this might be her big break.

"M'am, this is a restricted area," A man in uniform stopped her, "You're not allowed her, I'm afraid you have to turn back."

Carly waved her press pass at him, to her surprise, it actually worked. He stepped aside. He stepped aside with a contemptuous snort while muttering something she couldn't hear, but he stepped aside.

She hesitated, but decided to take the chance as she drove towards the shoreline, towards what seems to be…Sector Security chasing after and attacking a giant bird?

That can't be right.

Realizing she was in way over her head, Carly briefly wondered if she should turn back. Finally her desire for a good story getting the better of her, abandoned her car and stuck up on foot.

X

Jack grimaced against the setting sun. He had been staring blankly at the Satellite for the last hour and a half. That was the world he abandoned, when he gave up everything he had ever loved for a chance in Domino City. Even today, it's not a decision he ever regretted. But it does bring a tinge of, something when he looks back to the Satellite at a shoreline he no longer recognized, or when he sees Yusei somehow escaping the Satellite and getting to Domino City like they had always dreamt.

He shielded his eyes to look up at the approaching duel monster and its owner, the Black Rose. Another wimp who calls herself a duelist but refuses to play by the rules. He was quickly escorted towards the car by two Sector officers, concerned for the Domino King.

"Is that…?" Akiza strained her eyes, patting her dragon to descend despite the Sector Security on their tail. The Sector had been more difficult to shake off than she imagined. She was faster, but they were more organized, setting up barricades and aerial assault teams before she arrived.

"Jack," Yusei confirmed for her.

Yusei cellmates were dropped off in Domino City, taken away by a man named Blister, while Yusei continued towards the Satellite with her.

"Hm," Akiza mused, mischief twinkling in her eyes. She relented at the concerned disapproval in Yusei's eyes, "Okay, okay, I promise I'm not really going to hurt him."

"Akiza," Yusei wanted to laugh at the girl who was obviously determined to get revenge on his behalf, he sat back, deciding that he would indulge himself just this once.

Understanding its owner perfectly, Blue Rose Dragon swooped down threateningly, sending Jack Atlas and his bodyguards stumbling along the cracked street and into the nearest building.

"We've had our fun," Yusei looked at Jack's retreating figure and stopped Akiza from launching an actual attack.

"Maybe we can just pick him up and toss him around a little," Akiza suggested hopefully. Yusei laughed, shaking his head.

"Next time then," Akiza conceded. If Yusei keeps on stopping her from dealing real damage, there might be a lot of next times. She enjoyed the wind in her hair and the futile attempts of her enemies as her monster dodged numerous attacks, from guns to grenades, from the Sector. They could really learn something from the Satellite, Akiza thought as they made their way to the Satellite, no doubt to face more Sector forces.

Carly saw the giant bird charging towards people running on the street, and wisely decided that no story is worth risking her life like this. She ran as quickly as she could back into her car, started it up with shaking hands, and was about to floor the gas.

"Watch out!" She heard somebody scream and froze in fear. Thankfully, it wasn't directed at her. Several of Sector Security's numerous attacks on the giant bird (which she still can't quite believe was real) landed on a building nearby. The already abandoned building shook under the impact, before catching fire, the entrance collapsed entirely, trapping the people who had went inside escape the Black Rose.

She could see several of them trying to climb the burning wreckage that used to be the entrance to the building, a couple more just dodging the support beam that collapsed.

"What to do, what to do, what to do" Carly mumbled frantically as she took out her deck, drawing out a card on top. "Let's see, Fortune Fairy Hikari (lv1, 0/0)."

Carly looked up again. The building in front of her didn't look like it was going to last much longer and the people trapped inside might now make it out alive. "Alright, it seems like today is my lucky day," She took a deep breath to steady herself, "Let's see if it's yours."

Carly drove into the building, using her car to make a hole in the wall and prop up the crumbling ceiling, creating a temporary exit. What the heck, it's a company car.

* * *

"I got it!" Zigzix danced on top of his exercise wheel, a circus act he was getting quite good at. "I got it!"

"Got what?" Nervin looked up with a yawn.

"I have the structure for the Momentum!" Zigzix gestured wildly to the 'thing', that's what everybody's calling it, he built. "All we need is the core of the reactor and I can get this back online!"

"Hmm," Nervin nodded, that's a good thing, probably?

* * *

 **A/N :** I enjoy the idea of somebody being petty on Yusei's behalf.


	29. Dueling Against Magical Forces

**Disclaimer:** I do not own YGO 5Ds.

 **A/N:** This chapter was changed significantly because it reused a few combos from earlier chapters, and also because I felt like the characters' thought process were a little off.

* * *

"I would like to force Kalin into a children's card game by forcing Roman's hand," I grinned maliciously, an expression I learned from Rex Goodwin. I was met with the usual round of exasperated looks whenever I referred to duel monsters as the children's card game that it is.

"How exactly?" Vincent asked skeptically, "You were the one who said Dark Signers had magical powers we can't even comprehend, "And an army of brainwashed duelists doing their bidding."

"Roman's reaches extend far beyond Domino City, I've heard rumors he's even connected to Kaiba Corp. There isn't much we can to do him," Felice added.

"This is out of our hands Yuki," Vincent tried to convince me, "We have no idea what this guy's capable of, or the limits of his 'magics', why not just hand it to the Sector? Even they have to be concerned about somebody murdering hundreds of people, even if it's in the Satellite."

"Assume they do something for the Satellite," Chaos replied evenly, "How long do you think it'll be? Every day that there's a Shadow duel, hundreds of lives disappear from the Satellite. How many people would disappear in this town before the Sector can make head and tails of this, let along fix it?"

"You overestimate Roman. " I drummed my fingers on the table, "A bunch of mindless minions and corporate backing, and he thinks he can destroy the world. I think Roman Goodwin has forgotten about his own mortality, we wouldn't be good neighbors if we didn't remind him."

"Your last plan was too close," Vincent sighed, "At least tell me this plan is safer." Going over my plans, I decided to ignore that request.

"Are Dark Signers not human?" I asked rhetorically, "When we cut them, do they not bleed? When we poison then, do they not die?"

Yusei might have some qualms about murder, but apparently none of my team do. In fact, most of them looked way too eager for my liking.

"We're not going to kill Roman," I'm not sure what the murder of Dark Signers would lead to, so I'm keeping it as a backup plan, "Just teach him a lesson. Galen, would you like to do the honors?" I turned my eyes to the pink-haired teenager who was technically our Chief of Security, currently busy keeping himself awake at the meeting.

Galen nodded automatically, "What do you want exactly?"

"Come with me," I smiled back at him. "I have less than two weeks before I have to leave for Domino, I'd like to resolve this before then."

If this were a game, Roman would be a summoner, give or take. And we would be the warriors(/soldier/other time-period-appropriate close combat fighters). As long as we take him by surprise, he doesn't stand a chance.

As the rest of the crew dispersed, I whispered quietly into Galen's ears, "I'm assigning you a mission..." Galen agreed quietly and locked himself in a room for the next two days. When he came out again, he gathered a team of security guards and assigned their duties accordingly.

X

I was not informed of the details of Galen's plan. As the subsequent series of events obviously involve some acts of obstruction to justice, I know nothing of them except the rumors. Here's what I heard.

The next day, Roman Goodwin tripped on a wire placed outside his house, and as he fell forward, crushed a large paper lance pointing up at his chest. When unfolded, it read, 'be careful where you're stepping.'

Dark Signer activities surged in our area the next day, but couldn't do much damage, since most of the population were not duelists. Roman did send out his magical spiders to brainwash satellite, but that did less damage than he might have expected.

We _were_ forced to start a 'dueling wing' in the 'hospital', where the brainwashed were given a crappy deck (or were allowed to use their own crappy deck), and be forced to duel our designated duelists. One loss, and at time two, is sufficient to bring each brainwashed resident back to their senses. Hours were wasted, but no real harm done.

An initiative to eradicate spiders was also proposed, but ultimately rejected because spiders help control the rampant mosquito population in the Satellite. Kalin later told me that Roman's spiders only worked on those weak of will and had failed repeatedly on those in my team. He never even thought to target me, his loss I guess.

One day after, Roman Goodwin was found comatose at a bar in Domino City with no recollection of what happened. The bartender thought he was another drunk and looked through his pockets hoping to find identifying information, but only found a card that said 'be alert to the consequences of your actions.'

Our hospital had an order of midazolam that was neither recorded nor charged to the healthcare account on the day of this incident, but there's nothing to relate one incident with the other.

The minions stopped coming, but Dark Signers were spotted monitoring our location.

Three days later, a group of armed satellites reportedly shot at Roman Goodwin from a distance of over 100 meters. According to eye witness reports, a monstrous spider appeared out of thin air and captured many of the unnamed assailants, but the rest managed to subdue Roman Goodwin with long-range Tasers, the giant spider promptly disappeared. The weapons used were a common brand of projectile electro-neuroleptic rifles that released high-voltage electrical currents, which temporarily paralyzed the nervous system. An adorable teenager with pink hair supposedly told Roman Goodwin, "We'll use real guns next time."

The last statement was eventually confirmed by Roman Goodwin himself.

Coincidentally, several members of our security team was inexplicably paralyzed that night, they was sent to the hospital and recovered after a duel.

Dark Signer dueling activities had decreased dramatically. It took a total of 6 days before I got my duel.

* * *

Kalin got off the motorcycle with a sweeping glance at the crowd. (Nobody in our crowd brought motorcycles because I can't ride one and I don't want to be forced into a riding duel.)

My eyes were drawn instead to the rider behind him, Roman Goodwin stopped a couple of meters away on his own duel runner. I mentioned before that Jack automatically commanded the attention of everybody in the room, but if Jack Atlas was the sun, Roman would be the black hole from which nothing could escape.

"Yuki," Kalin said in that high-pitched cackle, "How good to see you again."

"Are you sure you want to do this?" I thought I'd try one last time, "I mean wasn't it always your dream to restore the Satellite to its former glory? Now we actually have a chance."

"Taking over this city no longer satisfies me," Kalin laughed hysterically, the crazy look in his eyes told me he had made up his mind. "Nothing on this earth shall satisfy me ever again!"

"You know, if you have a problem achieving satisfaction, they can treat that now." I said drily, having given up all hope on convincing the Dark SIgner to turn back.

Kalin looked at me uncomprehendingly and not even a chuckle from the crowd. All my best lines are completely lost on these people.

I thought I saw Roman's eye twitch, at least somebody gets my jokes.

"I came to fulfill our duel as promised," The Dark Signer gave me an annoyed look, "I even brought back-up just in case you tried anything."

Ah he knows me so well. I gestured to Chaos, indicating that he should aim the tranquilizer at me instead of Kalin in case of trying to stop the duel.

Meanwhile, Nervin and Zigzix tried to look as non-descript as possible while they adjusted the power locator that would pinpoint the Ruler of the Netherworld.

Like we rehearsed, Galen approached the younger Dark Signer carefully with his most disarming smile.

"I really don't know what to say," the pink-haired teen forced a smile, "But I liked you when you were on our side, I wish it didn't have to come to this."

Kalin nodded, his expression softening slightly. Galen ignored the hand he offered and hugged him instead.

Next in line, Felice walked up. The two had gained a sort of friendship after Kalin saved her life during Akiza's attack.

"I wish I could wish you good luck..." The white-haired trailed off, drawing in Kalin for a hug. She tried to cry but couldn't, she can't act very well yet, and it's hard to cry when you've heard the entire plan.

Kalin returned the hug, relaxing into her arms.

"We all knew this was coming," Felice smiled ruefully as she let go, "I just didn't think it would be this soon. It's been fun while it lasted."

Kalin only nodded in reply.

Vincent followed next. He wasn't exactly amongst the people Kalin trusted but he was the only one skilled at theft.

"It's been good knowing you," As he got closer, Vincent reached out a hand, Kalin looked down at the offered hand suspiciously and didn't make a move.

"Look, whatever happens in this duel, this is the last time we'll be on friendly terms," Vincent smiled at the Dark Signer for the first time, "it's been good knowing you Kessler." He's a far better liar than the rest of us.

Kalin nodded solemnly and took Vincent's hand. The redhead pulled him in for a hug instead. I saw Kalin freeze, his expression changing slightly.

I was confident that Kalin would understand. The loser of each Shadow Duel loses their life. So he thinks that either he would die at the end of the duel, or I would, and the rest of my gang would hunt him down until either side is no more. So he didn't object to Vincent's final gesture of goodwill.

Galen and Felice placed themselves strategically behind the pair so Roman can't see Vincent switching Kalin's deck from where he stood.

Vincent withdrew and stood behind Kalin, giving me a thumbs up.

"Perfect, let's start the duel." I said eagerly, not giving Kalin time to react.

"Let's." Kalin activated his duel disk, encasing us in four large pillars of light.

"Muaahh," I cackled joyfully, "Muuuaaahhh!"

The blue-haired Dark Signer waited patiently.

"Muaahh-ah? Wait, why don't you look surprised?" I asked suspiciously.

"You mean why am I not surprised that my deck had been changed to one of your design?" Kalin said with a sneer.

I nodded. I even asked Galen and Felice to go first to soften him up a bit to improve Vincent's chances.

"I'm the master of illusions, did you really think you could have fooled me with a sleight of hand?" He demanded "And to think, this is how low you sank in order to defeat me."

"This, this-" Vincent doubled checked the deck in his hand. "This is the deck I started with!" He said, flustered, "Sorry Yuki, but this has never happened to me before!"

"You underestimate the powers of the Shadows," Roman noted flatly from the sidelines.

"Gah," I grumbled. Thankful the duel hadn't yet started, I put back the deck in my hand and took another one out of the holster.

"So you have a plan B in case of failure?" Kalin asked. "Must be frequently useful."

"Actually this is plan F," I corrected. I takes duels, and indeed anything else, that can kill me very seriously. The basic plan, of course, was to destroy the Immortal (therefore its influence on its Dark Signer), then force the duel into a draw so Kalin doesn't die.

It's a little more challenging with Roman here, since he might prevent us from physically ending the duel, or even physically ending the duel if it's not in Kalin's favor. Still, it's better than having my soul sucked out of my body (and presumably die) because somebody _else_ was playing a card game.

"Huh," I looked at my hand in slight surprise. First of all, I had monsters, not only did I have monsters, I had a pretty decent hand. I wonder if I was also helped by a magical dragon or if the lucky Head of the Forbidden One (lv3, 1000/1000) I put in my deck was actually working for me. I don't intend to find out via experimentation.

* * *

 **Turn 1: Kalin's Turn, Kalin 4000, Yuki 4000**

Kalin: Hand- 6

Yuki: Hand- 6

"I start," Kalin looked at his hand. "I'll set one monster and one card facedown, that'll be all for now."

"Kalin has cards in his hand!" Cyril said excitedly, "That means he can't use most effects from his Infernity deack! Yuki will crush him!"

 **Turn 2: Yuki's Turn, Kalin 4000, Yuki 4000**

Kalin: Hand- 4, Field- Monster 1, Facedown 1

Yuki: Hand- 6

"I'll activate two copies of Upstart Goblin." I decided, "You gain 2000 life points but I can draw two cards. Next, I set one monster facedown and another card facedown and end my turn."

"What?" Vincent demanded, "Are you out of your mind? Finish him!"

I honestly wasn't bothered by his comment. You know the feeling when you over-prepare for something and you know you got it in the bag? That's where I was.

 **Turn 3: Kalin's Turn, Kalin 6000, Yuki 4000**

Kalin: Hand- 5, Field- Monster 1, Facedown 1

Yuki: Hand- 4, Field- Monster 1, Facedown 1

"If you're still trying to reach out to the Kalin you remember, you're wasting your time," Roman commented. "Kalin, would you mind demonstrating?"

"Gladly," Kalin grinned. "You see Yuki, even though you got the upper hand last time, the power of my deck has grown beyond your imagination since our last duel."

"I'll start with Card Destruction." Kalin announced, a typical move for Infernities to set up their graveyard first.

"You're messing with the wrong deck," I chuckled, discarding the four cards in my hand, "Shadoll Hedgehog and Shadoll Beast were sent to the graveyard, allowing me to draw an extra card and add another one from my deck to my hand, I choose Shadoll Squamata to add to my hand."

Yes, I'm running a Shadoll deck. No I still don't have any of the Shadoll extra deck monsters. It's frankly getting a little ridiculous how hard it was to find, let along purchase these powerful cards.

Kalin looked appropriately annoyed. Honestly, his spell probably helped me more than him.

"My facedown monster, **Infernity Necromancer (lv3, 0/2000) can** special summon another Infernity monster, **Infernity Guardian (lv4, 1200/1700)** to the field. I tribute both to summon **Nightmare Hand (lv10, dark tuner, 0/0)** to my field. When I do, I can special summon a level 2 or lower monster to my field, so come on out **Infernity Dwarf (lv2, 1200/600)"**

"Now, I dark tune my level 10 Nightmare Hand with my level 2 Infernity Dwarf. When shadows are swallowed by even darker shadows, the curtain opens, to reveal a world without light! Come forth, **Infernity Doom Dragon (lv8, 3000/3000).**

Kalin brought out one of the most powerful monsters in the deck the first chance he got. A black dragon covered in flames emerged to his side of the field, I could almost feel the heat against my face.

"Infernity Doom Dragon, attack!" Kalin commanded, aiming at the monster card I first set down.

"Kuribon," I revealed my facedown card, "You gain life points equal to your monster's attack, but this card returns to my hand unharmed."

"A very high price to pay for a single card," Kalin noted as his life points increased by 3000. "I place 2 cards facedown and end my turn."

 **Turn 4: Yuki Turn, Kalin 9000, Yuki 4000**

Kalin: Hand- 0, Field- Infernity Doom Dragon, Facedown 3

Yuki: Hand- 8, Field- Facedown 1

"I'll start with Upstart Goblin." I drew another card as Kalin's life points increased by 1000. I've always valued hand advantage, which leads to the strange combination that I had eight cards while Kalin had none.

"I flip summon **Shadoll Falco (lv2, tuner, 600/1400)** , so I can bring **Shadoll Squamata (lv4, 1800/1000)** to the field in face down defense position. Next I play this, Heavy Storm." The card that could crush many Infernity decks.

"I activate Infernity Barrier, this card that can negate any effect as long as I have a face-up Infernity monster on the field." Kalin countered.

"I thought you might have something like that. Now that's out of the way, I can activate the spell Soul Taker." Kalin obviously knew the effect of my spell card, but I explained it anyways. "This spell gives you 1000 LP, but allows me to destroy one monster you have on the field, so say goodbye to your dragon."

"Activate trap," Kalin said through gritted teeth, "Puzzle Reborn, I banish my monster from the field, but he returns at my next standby phase."

"Attack! Destroy him!" Cyril cheered, "Don't give him a next turn!"

"Um…" I silently apologized to my audience. "I set one monster face down and one trap face down to end my turn."

"You _are_ out of your mind." Vincent calmed down, "Should have seen this coming."

Not that I can explain my plan to him now.

"Yuki," Kalin didn't look at all moved by the gesture, "I always knew you were stupid, but even I didn't know you where this stupid. This will be easier than I thought."

 **Turn 5: Kalin's Turn, Kalin 11000, Yuki 4000**

Kalin: Hand- 1, Field- Infernity Doom Dragon, Facedown 2

Yuki: Hand- 5, Field- Monster Shadoll Falco, 2 monsters, Facedown 2

"Now that I had drawn a card, my dragon comes back to my field."

"Not quite, I activate Dark Renewal, which lets me tribute one monster on your side of the field and one monster on mine to summon a spellcaster from my graveyard. So I tribute my Shadoll Falco to summon **Shadoll Beast (lv5, 2200/1700)** from my deck, using your dragon as fodder. And when my Shadoll Falco was sent to the graveyard by a card effect, it comes back to the field face-down."

"I banish Stygian Street Patrol (lv4, 1600/1200) from my graveyard to special summon **Dark Tuner Nightmare Hand (lv10, dark tuner, 0/0)** to the field. By his special ability, I can special summon **Infernity Dwarf (lv2, 1200/600)** from my hand."

"Dark Tuner Nightmare Hand (lv10, dark tuner, 0/0) dark tunes with Infernity Dwarf (lv2, 1200/600) to synchro summon Void Ogre Dragon (lv8, 3000/3000). When shadows are swallowed by even darker shadows-"

"You know that speech in completely incorrect, right?" I asked innocently. "By definition, shadows are the absence of light, so it can't 'swallow' anything or 'be swallowed'."

Kalin choked. But the interrupted chanting of nursery rhymes didn't affect the synchro summon of his monster, which came onto the field just the same.

"Void Ogre Dragon, attack!" The Dark Signer commanded, "Destroy Shadoll Beast!"

The attack dealt me 800 damage.

 **Turn 6: Yuki's Turn, Kalin 11000, Yuki 3200**

Kalin: Hand- 0, Field- Infernity Doom Dragon, Facedown 2

Yuki: Hand- 6, Field- Monsters 2, Facedown 2

"I play a spell card, Dark Hole." I had a copy just in case Kalin summons a swarm of Infernities.

"You seem to forget that my dragon can negate one card per turn, your spell is pointless." Kalin pointed out.

"Not when I activate my second spell, Soul Taker, which gives you another 1000 life points and destroys your dragon.

So I wasted a spell card, I was feeling reasonably confident that I had the game in the bag.

"That'll be all for my turn." I motioned for Kalin to continue.

"What's wrong with you? You have to attack to win!" Felice was called from the sidelines.

"Chaos," I heard Vincent say, "If we team up, I think we can run the Zephyrs with a new leader."

I looked over to see Chaos nodding thoughtfully.

"Just because you're holding back doesn't mean I will. Give it up Yuki, the Kalin Kessler of the past is dead, the Dark Signer will do everything he can do destroy you! I activate Fires of Doomsday, which lets me summon **two Doomsday Tokens (lv3, 1000/1000)** to the field."

 **Turn 7: Kalin's Turn, Kalin 12000, Yuki 3200**

Kalin: Hand- 1, Field- two Doomsday Tokens, Facedown 1

Yuki: Hand- 3, Field- Monsters 3, Facedown 2

"I'll start with the Pot of Avarice, I return 5 monsters to my deck to draw two cards," Kalin cackled when he saw his hand. "Playtime's over. Brace yourself, I place one card face down and tribute both of my Doomsday tokens to summon **Earthbound Immortal Ccapac Apu (lv10, 3000/2500)**!"

At his words, the light on his arm shone a bright blue. As if to support him, Roman's mark burned also in a deep crimson.

X

"Oh god," I laughed at the sudden realization, I can't believe I didn't notice this when I was watching the anime, "You guys are color co-ordinated! Your mark, your outfit, in your case, even your hair. _Why_?"

They all have color-coordinated tattoos… A little unexpected for an evil organization planning on destroying/taking over the world.

"What color is Demak by the way?"

Kalin ignored both my question and my laughter, which soon died down as a void appeared on the field, signaling the approach of Earthbound Immortal Ccapac Apu.

If everything up to now could have been managed by special effects, I was sure this summoning was not. I saw humans rise out of the purple flames that surround us, and I saw them being sucked into void that is slowly forming the Earthbound Immortal. Purple lights filled the sky. Everywhere else, Darkness is all that remained.

"Feast your eyes, this shall be the last spectacle you'll ever witness." Kalin didn't look like he had a shred of sanity left.

"What's going on?" Chaos asked, alarmed. "Are those actually people? From the Satellite?"

Even as he spoke, we could see shards of light shoot up from random locations in the Satellite and into the emerging monster.

"That would explain the mysterious disappearances recently," Felice said incredulously, "If they were…" She stuttered, "Summoned somehow… Tributed? Sacrificed?!"

Out of sheer habit, the white-haired teen shot a couple of times at the gathering light, then at the monster on the duel arena, relieved that she as only hitting air, but more perplexed. "There's nothing there, that can't be right!"

"It's not. It's the culmination of evil and all that is wrong with the world." Roman answered with a fanatical gleam in his eyes. "Energy from human souls would power the summoning of Immortals so they may cross over to this world, for now and for ever!"

As the Netherworld Ruler's powers grow, Roman could feel himself losing grip on reality.

"This is what Dark Signers do?" Vincent demanded, "Suck souls out of the Satellite to power your delusions?"

"Yuki," Chaos shouted, aiming his gun at me, determined to stop the duel.

"No, wait!" I briefly wondered if I could duck out of the way in time if he did shoot, probably not. "This is what I've been waiting for."

By this time, the immortal has fully emerged onto the field, I felt a heaviness in my chest and in the air around me, making it hard to even breathe. I saw the monster move, and the dents it made on the ground, that's _not_ a hologram.

Thankfully, it doesn't look like it could leave the arena.

X

"Waiting still? For your destruction?" Kalin questioned, "Now my immortal, attack!"

"I activate Sinister Shadoll Games," I said instead.

"The Earthbound Immortals are immune to destruction by spells and traps," Roman explained patiently to his captivated audience.

"I activate Sinister Shadoll Games," I started again, "To discard Shadoll Squamata to the graveyard, so I can discard another card, Shadoll Hound to the graveyard also."

"Next, my trap flips **Shadoll Falco** face up on the field. Shadoll Falco lets me set **Shadoll Squamata** facedown. When Shadoll Hound is set to the graveyard, he can change the battle position of one monster on the field, so I can flip **Shadoll Squamata** to attack position, thereby activating his effect, letting me destroy one monster on the field, and guess who I'm targeting."

"Earthbound Immortal Ccapac Apu!" Kalin recoiled.

"Bingo. Say goodbye to your immortal." I waved at the monster as the effects of my Squamata wrapped around Ccapac Apu reducing it to pieces.

The Dark Signer blinked, the red Dark Signer marks on his face slowly faded, revealing the golden tattoos of the Facilities. The darkness that occupied his sclera slowly receded as he collapsed onto the ground. The horrified expression on his face told me he remembered very well what he had done.

"I forfe-" Kalin placed his right hand on his deck in a move that would end his own life.

"Not so fast," Roman held a hand out in our direction, and I could see Kalin's entire countenance change. Though the red Dark Signer markings on his face did not come back, he had a distinct look of insanity about him.

"What was that?" Galen stared at Roman then at Kalin, trying to convince himself that there was a relationship between the silver blond holding his hand out and the Kessler suddenly going crazy again.

"You may have defeated his Immortal," Roman said as he walked over to Kalin's side of the field, "But he's mine until the duel's over. Now Kalin, continue your turn. Show them why the Dark Signers have never been defeated."

"Show them. Dark Signers, never defeated." Kalin repeated. "When my hand is empty, I can special summon **Doom Submarine (lv9, dark tuner, 0/0)** to the field. Next, I activate Graceful Revival to bring **Infernity Des Gunman (lv1, 0/0)** to the field!"

I couldn't help taking a step back. Frankly, up to Roman's involvement, I had the duel pretty much under control. But this might be a problem.

"I dark tune my level 9 Doom Submarine with my level 1 Infernity Des Gunman to summon, **Hundred Eyed Dragon (lv8, 3000/3000)**! This monster lets me borrow the effect of all dark monsters in my graveyard, so I'll use Infernity Doom Dragon's effect to destroy your Squamata and deal you 900 damage."

"Next, I play a spell card, Soul Charge. At the price of 1000 life points per monster, I can bring back as many monsters to the field as I wish. Come back to the field, **Earthbound Immortal Ccapac Apu Ogre Void Dragon, Infernity Doom Dragon**!"

"I can't attack the turn I use Soul Charge, so I'll just use Infernity Doom Dragon's effect again and destroy Shadoll Falco to deal you 300 damage."

 **Turn 8: Yuki's Turn, Kalin 9000, Yuki 2100**

Kalin: Hand- 0, Field- Hundred Eyed Dragon, Earthbound Immortal Ccapac Apu Ogre Void Dragon, Infernity Doom Dragon

Yuki: Hand- 4, Field- Shadoll Falco, Shadoll Squamata, Monsters 2, Facedown 1

The four monsters Kalin had on his field barely fit on the duel arena.

"Um…" Vincent rubbed his nose, "If the loser of this duel dies, should we just decide on a new leader now? We might still get a will or something."

"Yuki can still beat him!" Galen shouted, not sounding nearly as confident as he would have liked.

"I highly doubt that," Roman replied.

"You may have taken out my monsters one at a time," Kalin cackled. I will admit, his cackles were slightly better than mine, they just sounded more evil. "But how are you going to stand up to four of the most powerful monsters in the world?!"

"Hopefully, with this, **Summoner Monk (lv4, 800/1600)**." By its own effect, the monster switched to defense position.

"Using its special ability, I discard the spell card Mystical Space Typhoon to my graveyard to summon **Chaos Phantom (lv4, 0/0)** from my deck."

"Yay!" Galen cheered.

"This new monster has no attack or defense," Vincent said flatly. "And don't forget, the Immortal can attack directly next turn."

"Chaos Phantom has a special ability, once per turn, it can banish one dark attribute monster from my graveyard and take on its ability for this turn." I figured a life-and-death situation is good as any to try out this combo for the first time.

"So now, my fiend shall borrow the ability of Sky Scourge, Norleras (lv8, 2400/1500), the card your Card Destruction helped send to the graveyard. Chaos Phantom gains 2400 attack and Norleras' special ability. I pay 1000 life points to send everything in our fields and hands into the graveyard, then I get to draw one card."

"Everything?" Galen repeated, dumbfounded "Monsters, spells, traps, all of it?"

I looked around, feeling a little smug that even Roman looked stunned.

"And since it doesn't destroy any thing, your monster's special abilities can't defend against it."

Judging by the contortions on Kalin's face, the Immortal's hold on him was weakening again. So I spoke quickly.

"When Shadoll Beast is sent to the graveyard, I draw an extra card, and when Shadoll Falco is sent to the graveyard, he's special summoned back to the field in defense mode."

"Ten bucks says she's ending the turn without attacking," Vincent's initial enthusiasm had died down completely.

And he would have won his bet.

I felt a jolt as I drew the next two cards, I'm reasonably sure that I was being helped out by a magical lizard this time and I was. And I'm a little concerned how that lizard knew exactly the card I needed.

"I place two cards facedown and end my turn."

 **Turn 9, Kalin's Turn, Kalin 9000, Yuki 1100**

Kalin: Hand- 0, Field- 0

Yuki: Hand- 1, Field- 1 monster, 1 facedown

* * *

"Thanks for trying Yuki," Kalin's eyes finally cleared, looking like his old self again as Roman seem to have given up on the duel, "But thanks for nothing. I've done a lot of bad things these last couple of years, and I've hurt a lot of people. And now it's time for me to pay for my sins."

"I activate," I cut him off before he could announce the forfeiture, "Self Destruct Button," I flipped over the trap card I had bet the entire duel on. "When the difference in our life points is higher than 7000, I can activate this trap and force the duel into a draw."

"Very impressive," Roman Goodwin commented, "So that was your plan all along."

I shrugged.

"Seems like we found ourselves a Signer," Roman mounted his motorcycle, "Till we meet again, Yuki Tono."

I was distracted before I could make a witty comeback.

"Why?" Kalin demanded angrily, "Why bother? There's nothing left for me here!"

"I beg to differ," I laughed, feeling relaxed for the first time in days. "You had a dream of restoring the Satellite, why not make it happen?" And therefore do my work for me.

"Dream?" Kalin laughed bitterly, "I don't have dreams anymore Yuki, all I'm left with is nightmares. Hell, I _am_ a nightmare, the name Kalin Kessler is enough to bring nightmares to children in the Satellite."

Personally, I'd be proud to be the cause of nightmares in children, but I understand this is neither the time nor the place for that argument.

"Well then, now's the time to change that," I offered, "I mean you're only what, 20, 21? You have your whole life ahead of you to correct really just minimal damage."

Kalin looked more irritated than convinced by my comments, I'm not good at this therapy stuff. I wonder if we can still find a therapist in the Satellite, I don't think we've managed to kidnap one yet.

Thankfully, his exhaustion soon became too much for him and he passed out.

"Yuki," Vincent walked up without bothering with congratulations. I noticed Chaos and Galen already left. "We need backup at the harbor, Yusei just got here."

"I thought he wasn't supposed to be back until tomorrow," I asked, indifferent.

"Sector Security had different ideas," Vincent managed a wry smile. "Everybody is already at the pier, trying to do damage control."

Damage control, I shuddered. If I've learned anything in the past couple of weeks, it's that my crew was much better at damage than control. I mean they're improving very quickly, which is not to say they're remotely good at it. "We might as well go I guess," I decided.

"I'll take Kalin to Crow," Felice offered, addressing my concern of somebody killing Kalin on the road. Crow is technically responsible for human resource management, which taken literally, means he takes care of people, mostly those under the age of 12.

"Great," I was content to leave the problem that is Kalin with somebody else and address the problem that is Sector Security.

* * *

 **A/N:** I couldn't resist at least one 'satisfaction' joke.

Also I just discovered the 'center' button!


	30. The Reasoning Behind Card Games

**Disclaimer:** I do not own YGO 5Ds.

* * *

I had rushed to the pier expecting, well, I wasn't exactly sure what I was expecting, never having been involved in a fugitive escape plan before. I thought the pier would be pitch black with secret-espionage stuff going on in the darkness. Or there would be Michael Bay level gratuitous explosions and an army facing off against Akiza Izinski. Instead, I saw giant holographic monsters.

Of _course_ I did. I should have known. How should Sectory Security capture wanted criminals if not by dueling? I think I'm happy that my crew is winning in this contest of children's card games. I think.

I saw Yusei, dueling three Sector officers at once and wiping the floor with them. I saw Chaos, just ordering his Black Lustre Soldier for a second attack. I saw Felice, who was obviously glad that she finally has something non-logistics-related to do, laughing maniacally as her machines stomped out what's left of her opponent's life points.

They all looks so serious about their children's card games.

Turning around immediately, I decided to leave. I wasn't going to be involved in this farce of an arrest/escape attempt, I had better things to do, probably.

"Hey," One Sector officer, looking no older than Yusei, stopped me before I could leave. "Are you involved with these people?"

"Um," I hesitated, finally deciding that it would be far too embarrassing to admit that not only did I know these adults currently using a children's trading card game to defy the justice system, I was their leader. "No, not at all." I replied resolutely.

"Good for you," He smiled, genuinely pleased at seeing somebody who hadn't sided with the riffraff of the Satellite.

I nodded and turned to go, but had to turn back as curiosity got the better of me.

"Why are you guys _dueling_?" I asked a question I had literally wanted to know a lifetime ago.

The kid blushed, making the freckles on his nose stand out even more. "We had to, captain's orders."

"And you never questioned those orders?" Maybe it's not just the Satellite that has problems.

"Are you kidding me?" He huffed his chest out defensively, then sloughed back at what he was about to say, "Do you see that, that's Black Rose Witch!"

I looked at him, comprehension slowly dawning in my eyes.

"She could crush us all with a snap of her fingers if she wanted to! It's much safer just to duel her into a surrender."

"And if you lose?" I pointed to Yusei who was taking on his second set of three Sector Officers.

"Then the boss can't say we didn't try," His eyes twinkled.

I laughed at the response.

"Hey, crime doesn't pay." He reminded me seriously. "Look at them, they always think they at the top of the world when they're winning, but one slip up and it's off to the Facilities. And sooner or later, they always slip up."

"Huh, I never thought of it like that." I admitted. When a Sector Officer loses, they just move on, when a satellite loses, they get arrested immediately. Of course, when you have an innumerable number of challengers, sooner or later you _will_ lose.

I have to admit, the Sector's smarter than I've given them credit for.

"I have to go," I said hurriedly. I have to end this before somebody on my team actually loses.

"I gotta get back to work, gotta beat that rogue satellite." He lined up behind one of the three people currently dueling Yusei, he was third in line, it'll be his turn soon.

Again wishing we had cellphones, I grabbed Felice out of her duel to get Lazar, he's the only one we have who can stop this right now.

* * *

A Dark Signer had been turned.

While Yuki all but passed out in her bed, the news of a Dark Signer having been converted to back to a human spread quickly to all for whom that information was relevant.

It offered a gleam of hope to some, but even more than that, it created unforeseen alarm and tension.

Rex Goodwin paced irritably in his office. Rex had long zeroed in on the identity of all five Signers, this extra candidate might present a problem. She is, however, coming to the Fortune Cup, as Lazar assured him, he'll just have to sort things out then.

There's a more urgent, if not more important question. His plan had been set in stone, he thought his plan had been set in stone years ago, but now an opportunity presents itself for him to free Roman. Finally after being controlled by the darkness 17 years ago and suffering for every day of it, his brother might breathe, eat, sleep, _live._ His older brother, his only living family. And he can't deny that the potential to hold this over Roman for the rest of his life was infinitely appealing…

"Kalin." Roman murmured, he never imagined he would be so happy to see one of the candles on his desk extinguished. Kalin had gone a different path than he, perhaps a better path, perhaps much worse if the Netherworld Ruler were to emerge victorious. But such was his fate, and Roman was done playing with fate.

This new Signer though, remains a threat. In his mind, Roman had little doubt the green-haired woman he saw the other day was a Signer. Only a Signer can defeat a Dark Signer. She must be taken care of, and quickly. It's perhaps worth noting that Roman was not gifted with the powers of illusion and as such, had no idea that Kalin's deck had been changed prior to the duel.

"Yes sir," Lazar nodded to the giant TV screen that displayed a member of Yliaster. He had just 'escaped' from the Satellite, albeit with a much fatter wallet, with the retreating Sector forces defeated by a card game. "Yes, yes, the escape convict Kessler, part of a gang, called themselves the Dark Signers. Just a trivial Satellite thing really, definitely nothing for you to be concerned about. He did leave his gang, that's what my sources tell me."

* * *

I woke up the next morning after 10 hours of sleep, feeling refreshed and ready to take on the world. Just kidding, I've been sleep deprived for two weeks, and as anybody severely sleep deprived for a short period of time would know, the first night doesn't make you feel better at all.

Reality, though, is a harsh mistress. I did remember what happened last night and was vaguely aware of things I needed to take care of, like a certain crab-haired duelist who would help me get a machine that could destroy the world. Fueled with that idea, I stumbled out of bed and into our factory, which, thankfully, was still just two doors across.

Yusei and Akiza were dueling, naturally. Crow had already left to tend to his duties as baby-sitter-in-chief, poor kid. I did feel a little happier. Whenever I'm utterly worn out and resenting the world, it always helps look at somebody more miserable.

"Yuki!" Yusei paused the duel, an act that gave me second thoughts.

"Welcome back?" I looked ruefully at the golden tattoo on his face, the mark of a convict. Don't get me wrong, it's a good look for him, but I do feel a little guilty that I didn't try very hard to prevent it.

"Good to be back," Yusei actually bumped fists with me, oblivious to my deliberate inaction before and during his brief imprisonment. In my defense, the tattoos are a good look for him.

"How's Kalin?" After everything that's happened in the last couple of days, that was the first question he asked me. "When Crow left this morning, he said Kalin wasn't up yet, and when I went to look for him, he was gone."

"Any idea where Kalin went?" I asked Cyril.

"If you wanted a babysitter, you should have asked Hogan to do a better job." Vincent replied for his fellow ex-Magician. The Magicians was one of the many non-aggressive gangs disbanded by the Enforcers during their reign of terror (yes, that's what they're calling it), and the giant duelist still held a serious grudge.

"Has anybody seen Kalin today?" I rolled my eyes at Vincent's lack of professional behavior, I have to instill that into our corporate culture sometime, or pair them off in a buddy system. In hindsight, it was lucky I didn't leave Kalin alone last night given the state he was in, it's an old care tactic for possibly suicidal patients.

"He hasn't left his room when I left, didn't come down to breakfast either, I knocked on his door until I heard him telling me to get lost, he should be fine still," Chaos answered. Having taken care of many kids, he acted paternal to the rest of us half the time. "He should be around here somewhere, I removed the ignition system on his duel runner in case he tried to dash." Chaos acted paternal _half_ the time, the other half he was the guy who managed to feed 10 kids in this abandoned city.

"I'll go look for him," I decided. "There aren't many places he could have gone."

"I'll go too, maybe he went to one of our old hideouts." Yusei added. Akiza stood beside him, not bothering to voice her support.

I briefly considered the possibility of going back to bed and letting Yusei take care of things, then had to berate myself for being so lazy.

Everybody else, even the people who just came back last night, had detailed tasks and projects scheduled, designed by yours-truly, so we were the only ones available.

Nervin waved at me like shooing away a fly.

Still not having learned how to ride a motorcycle, I walked over to our 'apartment complex' in search of the once-leader of the Enforcers.

"Buddy?" I knocked on his door, "you up?"

Silence greeted me, that's usually not a good sign. Though with Kalin, it's really hard to tell.

I tried the handle, it yielded easily. There was nobody inside, I don't know what else I expected.

I doubt checked the parking lot on my way out. His duel runner was gone, he took the engines off another runner. Right.

There was the entire Satellite and I had no idea where to find him. Now, if I were an ex-Enforcer turned ex-Dark Signer overridden with guilt and had lost hope in life, where would I be? The answer came to me in a flash, the symbol of the end of all hope for the Satellite of course.

I borrowed Chaos' duel runner to ride to Daedalus Bridge. I borrowed Chaos' runner because like other electric scooters, it had three wheels, an extra feature that I really appreciated.

There's always more or less of a crowd at the Daedalus Bridge. Out of the half million or so people in the Satellite, somebody is bound to feel emo. Today, a light-blue-haired ex-Dark Signer joined them. Unlike the others staring hopelessly across the river, I could see him slowly scale the remnant of Rex Goodwin's labors.

"Kalin!" I waved frantically, wishing that I had brought help. Kalin hadn't been too difficult to read before, but right now, I can't even tell if he's trying to rebuild the bridge or jump off of it.

"Yoo-hoo?" Crashing into the base of the bridge, I jumped off, looking up against the light at the man atop the bridge. "Buddy?"

He looked down. All I could see were golden eyes set in a gaunt shadow that stood against the light. I presume he said something, but there's no way to here from this distance. Seeing that he had made no move to come down, I sighed and carefully stepped onto the bridge that's beginning to look a lot steeper up close. I was really glad that Goodwin didn't get very far before he was stopped.

"Yuki," Kalin barely lifted his eyes to look at me. He seems to have lost all energy after last night's duel.

"Hey," I made a small wave, secretly relieved that at least he wasn't dead. "Umm," I was never trained at this therapist stuff, though 'how are you' probably wasn't the best question right now.

"Don't worry, I'm not going to jump." He assured me, which, frankly, was exactly what I wanted to hear, though it's not comforting how far he was leaning into the air. "I don't deserve to die the same way as a legend."

So he _does_ believe a man who rides a motorcycle off a bridge and was never seen again for 17 years is dead. Good for him.

Seeing that he wasn't going to do anything rash, I edged closer, sitting down beside him with my legs dangling off the edge of the bridge, feeling the stone and mortar Rex Goodwin built with his own two hands. I have to ask him how he did that sometime.

"So what are you doing here?" I began a little awkwardly, which was a really bad question now that I think about it.

"Hmmm," Kalin responded. I guess I had to take that as a response, because he didn't say anything for another whole minute. Usually when you wait that long, people say something.

"Anything you wanna talk about?" I felt proud of myself for thinking of that question. So tactful, non-intrusive yet effective. I also have low standards for myself as far as therapy skills are concerned.

"I thought about what happened last night," Kalin said, staring into the light of Domino City that shone brightly even during the day. "And the two years before that."

"Thinking's overrated?" I ventured.

"I really wanted to kill people." He ignored my comment, "I wanted to kill you last night. I had helped that demon take hundreds of souls from the Satellite. Don't you see? I was a murderer." Before I could say anything, he continued, "My victims happened to come back, but I did kill them."

So technically attempted murder, but I don't think that's what he wants to hear right now.

"You were brainwashed, you have to forgive yourself," I'm very good at that.

"Why?" He demanded, "I didn't forgive anybody else for two years, why should I be any different?"

Because humans are inherently selfish and judge others by their actions and ourselves by our motives? But unlike me, Kalin was actually a good person, so that rhetoric might not be as effective on him.

"So you think you need to atone for your sins." I tried a different tactic.

He turned to look at me, interested for the first time.

"You should be punished for everything you've done." I led him on carefully.

He nodded again.

I gnawed on the inside of my cheeks to hold back a perverted grin. Kalin, willingly punished... No, no, I have more important things to take care of, there's no time for fun now.

"So what are your plans? Bet your life on each duel until you inevitably lose and spend the rest of your life in physical torment to ease your guilt?"

Kalin looked up in alarm at me stating his exact plan.

"That's a rather an undeserving way to achieve satisfaction, don't you think? You might feel better about yourself but you would have done nothing to be worthy of such solace." Going to Crash Town and fighting for a gang leader is really an odd choice for penance. Even if he loses and suffers a life of mining underground, it really doesn't help anybody except a single mob boss in a small Midwest-styled town beside the futuristic Domino City.

"What are you thinking?" Kalin asked suspiciously.

"Then how about City planning?" I replied cheerfully.

Kalin gave me a disparaging look, "I don't want some management job, I want to pay for everything I've done."

"Then City Planning would be perfect," I nodded for emphasis, "it's the most miserably job I have. It's the backbone of the economy and it'll help a lot of people. TTrust me, far more people would hate you than when you were at your Dark Signer gig."

Kalin rolled his eyes, but did manage a dry chuckle.

"This isn't the first time I've been selfish, Yuki," He sighed. "So I'm asking you for a favor, as a friend- let me go. Let me find something that'll numb this gnawing pain inside of me."

That's a red flag for imminent drug abuse if I've ever seen one.

"You don't need me here," He continued, almost pleading, "The Satellite doesn't need me anymore. Can't you let me go somewhere so I won't be haunted by nightmares of everything I've ever done?"

I would, except I know he'd end up working for a third-rate mob boss in the middle of nowhere hoping to condemn himself to a life of menial labor. And I really need somebody to build an army of psychic duelists for me.

"What do you want to do then?" I asked, wondering if he was planning on carrying out his stupid plan from the anime.

"I don't know, Yuki." He replied, looking into the distance, "I have struggled all my life trying to find something worthwhile, yet my dreams always lead to disaster. Every choice I make only makes things worse. This time, I will surrender myself to Fate. Wherever it leads me, I will follow."

Okay, so same stupid plan from anime it is.

"Well, Fate led you here." I wiggled a little closer to him, putting a hand on his shoulder, "So stop choosing。 Surrender, and follow. If you had any idea of what you want to do, I'd let you go. Until then, stay. Help me. If you don't have a dream, you can share in mine."

"I-" Kalin looked moved for a second, before changing his mind again. "I told you, you don't need me anymore. Look around, your dream is all but a reality." He leaned closer, then held his hands up in front of me and formed a rectangle between his thumbs and index fingers. Looking through it, I saw the river and coasts on both sides. Thanks to heavy infrastructure investments, they looked almost indistinguishable.

"Do you think that's all I have planned?" It's strange nobody else questioned me on this. The Zephyrs has very limited long-term plans, as is common in the Satellite. So even though I know exactly what I want to do for this world (to this world), I've never actually told anyone.

Kalin looked at me curiously.

"Would you call me ambitious if I told you I wanted create a chance for everybody in every Satellites?" I asked softly, looking down onto the crowd below. "For each and every one of them to escape into a better life."

"Not ambitious." Kalin replied, "Just very, very stupid. The chances of your success is low enough to call the attempt a waste of time, why not stick to what you can change?"

"They called you stupid when you tried to change the Satellite," I replied teasingly. He's wrong of course. I think if I really put my mind to it, I could manage it. I have no plans of taking on such an momentous task, I'm just saying anything to get him off the ledge.

"And they were right, I failed." Kalin pointed out darkly.

"But nobody would call me stupid if I said right now that I wanted to change the Satellite. They would have called it impossible a month ago. There's enough resources to provide an adequate living standard for every person on the planet, it just needs to be in the hands of somebody who knows how to use it."

"How?"

"We'll have enough energy to restore agriculture and manufacturing," I began, then immediately realized it was too specific for him. He had no idea what I was talking about. So I started again, simplifying things as much as I could, "I'm going to build a city that accepts anyone who wants to come, so no satellite would be stranded again with nowhere to go."

Terms and restrictions apply, and it might be much more than a city. But that's another story.

"You're right, that is very ambitious." Kalin searched my eyes searching for any signs of deceit, finding none. "I can't imagine anything more satisfying. If Fate led me here, I won't fail Her this time. Go, lead the way, I'll be right behind you."

"Good, 'cause we're becoming a spectacle for the audience," I motioned at the small crowd gathering to watch the two idiots sitting off the ledge of the half-built bridge.

Kalin stood up, dusting off his jeans. "Let's go."

He rode his duel runner off the bridge. I on the other hand, walked down like a normal human being, because it's completely ridiculous to ride a motorcycle onto a half-built bridge, and also I didn't think I could make Chaos' electric scooter go up this steep an incline.

* * *

Blitz leaned back on their couch, putting his feet up on the coffee table he built, and sighed contently, even the incessant noise of construction above ground couldn't distract him from his good mood. Like many of the satellites, he didn't get a job in the Development, it's never a good idea to get too attached to the newest fad in the Satellite. Still, the unexpected competition had forced Domino factories to improve working conditions and reduce hours to keep the discontentment of their workers more or less at bay, which is why he could get off early this Wednesday afternoon.

Tank had taken the day off to go to the pier and pick up their shipment of hamburger and milkshakes. It had been Tank's dream to eat a hamburger dipped in milkshakes. His dream was to get out of the Satellite. Rally's dream was to become the best duelist in the world. At one time in his life, not that long ago, he had thought their dreams had about equal chances of becoming a reality.

If Yuki had known, she would have explained that like Twinkies, these hamburgers never spoils, making them one of the easiest things to transport to remote locations, or prime coastal real estate like the Satellite. Also that dipping hamburgers in milkshakes is a horrible idea and a disgusting combination. Of course, Yuki didn't know. She had taken one bite of the burgers and, not being able to identify its ingredients, decided that it was probably another one of those failed meat-imitation things, and promptly throwing the rest of the burger out. Throwing food out is a bad habit that our visitor had yet to get rid of.

"Blitz, this came for you, I'll be back before sundown" Rally skipped into the tunnels, handing him a letter. Thanks to the increase in commercial activity and visitors from Neo Domino, Rally had been working as a middleman, getting a cut of the action and now making more than Tank or himself. Of course, instead of spending the money on food or clothing, Rally chose to invest it in trading cards.

The brunet read the letter in his hand, then reread it. A personal invitation from Yuki Tono to a job interview. What could the leaders of the Zephyrs want with a common satellite like him?

He didn't like the idea of getting involved with the newest maniac trying to run the Satellite from the inside. Sure, what she did had a positive effect on the town so far, but god knows how long that lasts. Blitz had his money (now that there's money circulating in the Satellite again) on two weeks after the Fortune Cup, when the Sector would have their hands free to deal with this newest group, Tank had his money on eight days.

Nonetheless, it's probably not a good idea to piss Tono off before the Sector's got to her. Blitz reluctantly decided to check things out.

* * *

 **A/N:** I don't like this chapter title, I debated changing it to War Mongering, but thought that was a bit on the nose.


	31. In Obtaining the Momentum

**Disclaimer** : I do not own YGO 5Ds

 **A/N:**

Aka: To Get A Machine That Could Destroy The World

Parts of previous chapters were altered. The basic plot's the same, I just feel like it flows better now.

* * *

"I have a plan," I announced proudly to the assembly of basically every person I could trust in the Satellite, this plan would need everybody. "We're going to steal the Momentum."

The Momentum had been all I could think about since the idea came to me. I even went as far as hiring Blitz and Tank to lead a team of bodyguards to Zigzix, to make sure the ideas leaks to somebody like Roman Goodwin.  
Blizzard sprayed the tea he was drinking onto the table.

My announcement was met with mixed reception, ranging from 'are you okay' (Galen) to 'are you crazy' (Felice) to 'what the hell is wrong with you' (Vincent).

I had underestimated the effect even the idea of Momentum has, it was the disaster that defined this generation. I lost control of the room almost immediately, which erupted into a sea of protests.

"Guys, let's hear it out first," Yusei said, his voice cut through the commotion in the room. Frankly, I was a little disappointed that he didn't say 'I'll do it, I'll take the ring to Mordor."

"What do you have in mind?" Ara asked before anybody could complain about Yusei's presence let along involvement.

"Well," I grinned, sincerely proud of the idea. "It's not as difficult as it sounds. We only need about half an hour to disassemble the Momentum and an hour to transport it somewhere safe. Half that time if Akiza helps out." I nodded to the no-longer-(as)-insane redhead.

She smiled gently, no sign of that woman who almost ripped half of Sector Security to pieces last night when she thought she was going to lose a children's card game. Yusei had talked her through it and she won in the end. Though from what footage I had of that duel and her subsequence duels that night, I can't help noticing that her opponents weren't exactly playing at their best after that, whether consciously or subconsciously.

"The Momentum is at the heart of the Dark Signer's lair, but there're only two Dark Signers guarding it, Roman and Demak." Carmine was still a junior reporter and Misty was doing a world tour. "I need two people to challenge either of them and draw them away from the Momentum, stall as long as possible, then we'll get somebody to force an end to the duel when the time is right."

"How?" Cyril asked skeptically, he was familiar with the powers of the dark duels first hand.

"We have a lot options," I scratched my head, "like explosives to destroy the duel arena, knocking one or both of the participants unconscious, breaking a duel disk, even temporarily cutting off reception to the Momentum, the possibilities are endless, but we'll decide on the exact mechanics depending on who's dueling whom."

"If we can get the Dark Signers away long enough, this might actually work," Felice nodded, "And if anything goes wrong, Dark Signers aren't bullet-proof. Are they?" She asked as a second thought, turning to Kalin sitting silently at the end of the table. The ex-Dark Signer shook his head silently.

"All your plans aside," Vincent interjected, "Why are we doing this?"

"What do you mean?" Nobody here had asked me that yet, which come to think of it, is a little odd.

"Why are we doing this?" Vincent repeated, "Why are we trying to steal a machine that decimated half the city 17 years ago?"

"The Dark Signers are going to use it," I paused, not sure how much I can say and still be able to explain away my knowledge, or sound believable for that matter, "For some really bad stuff. So we have to get it out of their hands."

"If you wanted to destroy the Momentum, I'm behind you all the way," Vincent twirled his red ponytail between his fingers, "If you want to steal it, you'll need to explain a little more."

"I need it," I hesitated. I don't know if either or both of the magical deities in this world are omniscient, but even if they're not, I definitely didn't want the information getting into the hands of people like Goodwin. "I just do."

"For what?" Vincent refused to let the subject go. "What do you need a machine that can blow up a city for?"

To destroy powerful monsters that can blow up cities and also gain leverage against Goodwin and Yliaster by being able to blow up cities. Obviously. But I can't exactly explain things like that. "Power is power," I said instead, "And power like that is much better in our hands than the hands of our enemies."

"That's ridiculous!" Vincent protested, "You can literally say that about anything, that's not enough reason to start a war with these Dark Signers, especially not if they're as powerful as you say they are."

"We're already at war with the Dark Signers," I presume my duel Kalin essentially declared war with the Dark Signers. In retrospect, it probably wasn't a good sign that almost nobody in the Zephyrs knew that, "What we can choose now is what to do about it. The Momentum will be our strongest weapon against the darkness."

The rest of the meeting went more or less as I planned, verging on less rather than more. But Yusei agreed to duel Demak and I would duel Roman Goodwin. Akiza and Nervin would head the effort to extract the Momentum. Akiza because she's the brawns of the operation, and Nervin because he's the only one who can control Zigzix.

"That's crazy," Blizzard whispered to Cyril after the meeting, he hesitated "Isn't it?"

"Yeah," Cyril agreed, "Insane."

"Then why did everybody agree to it?" The blond asked.

"A couple of them are crazy themselves," Cyril looked at Yusei askance, the crab-haired duelist sensed his gaze and returned a smile, "And the rest of us don't have a choice. I mean do you think Yuki's going to stop just because we don't go along with her schemes?"

"With Galen and Chaos applauding her every decision," Vincent added darkly, "We couldn't stop her if we tried."

Had Yuki heard, she would have pointed out the usefulness of having their new security team under control.

"I'm sure Yuki has her reasons," Chaos defended indignantly.

"I agree, but after everything, aren't you at all concerned what these reasons might be? Don't forget the last group," He corrected himself when he saw Crow, "The last person who went power mad and wanted to rule this town."

"Maybe if we just got rid of Kessler," Chaos mused out loud, eyeing the ex-Dark Signer.

"I don't think Kessler is to blame this time." Vincent shook his head.

"I've never liked it when Yuki has a plan," Felice added thoughtfully.

* * *

"Jack, wa-wait for me!" Carly chased after the Duel King of Domino City.

Said Duel King of Domino City paused in his steps without turning back, until Carly was about a foot behind him, before walking quickly again.

The brunette chased after him, panting heavily with effort.

She never imagined when she drove her car into the burning wreckage that Jack Atlas would be amongst the people she would save. Though that information was kept strictly confidential to protect the reputation of the King (a decision that Carly whole-heartedly supported), Jack had deigned to let her hang around in the last couple of days.

Jack figured he needed a distraction anyhow.

That's why they had just come from Jack's last turbo duel, and Carly had convinced Jack to skip his interview with her old school rival Angela and come out to the city with her instead.

Carly had already churned out three articles on the private life of Jack Atlas, except her boss wouldn't believe a word of it, calling it a pile of plagiarized gibberish not fit for the tabloids. She needed something deeper, some inside scoop on what's going on with Jack Atlas. But she can't just ask him, he'd think she's after him because she wanted a good story. Then he'd never return her feelings.

The reporter noticed Jack was twenty feet away and had stopped again, trying not to make it too obvious that he was waiting for her. She took a deep breath and started running again.

* * *

"What are we doing here again?" Tank asked Blitz while staring at the clearly-insane scientist running on a hamster wheel. That's right, not in, _on top of_ the hamster wheel.

"We're bodyguards, and we're here to make sure he doesn't say something he shouldn't," Blitz answered to the best of his abilities.

"How do we know if he's said something he shouldn't if we don't know what it is that he shouldn't say?" Tank questioned, yawning. It's a good job, definitely much easier than the factories, and pays more too. Except he wasn't entirely sure what he was supposed to do.

"Nervin wouldn't tell me," Blitz replied a little resentfully, "Who cares. We're just here so we don't get on Tono's bad side, remember?"

"Hm," Tank continued to wonder.

"Eureka!" Zigzix suddenly jumped off of his exercise wheel and towards his desk, "I got it! Even with what we have in the Satellite, I can convert the Momentum's powers to be used for destruction! We'll rule the world!"

" _That_." Blitz said finally, after the duo stared at each other wordlessly for a minute, " _That_ is what he shouldn't say.

* * *

I wasn't particularly interested in meeting Roman, but I needed to drag him away from the Old Reactor. Yusei was going to challenge Demak, to ensure the Dark Signer headquarters would be completely empty for the theft of the Core of the Momentum.

Chaos drove me to our agreed meeting site, away from both the Dark Signers hideout and our headquarters to greet Roman Goodwin who was waiting already.

Roman Goodwin, I smiled. The last Main Character, the favorite of Fate twenty years ago, until his fall into a common, barely adequate anime villain.

The silver blond stood at slightly over six feet. My eyes trailed broad shoulders down chiselled muscles to narrow hips and long legs that even his loose clothing couldn't hide. He had abandoned his cape since the Dark Signers went public and I must say, this 'dark powers from a wicked god keeping its victims immortal' thing has been very good for him. I've never been a huge fan of beefcakes but even I'll admit he's in better shape than anybody on my team.

Hmmmm… Beef… Cake... I haven't had beef or any kind of meat for almost a month now, except the burger that Vincent tried to convince me was meat but had the texture and flavor of an old shoe (I imagine).

I don't think I've ever gone this long without eating either meat or cake, not since I started eating solid food. Looking at Goodwin, I felt hungry. Not in a sexual way, it's an even more primitive desire.

Some thoughts flashed across my mind that would have immediately raised the rating of this story to NC-21.

"Yuki?" Chaos nudged me, "Um, Yuki, are you alright?"

"Right," I dragged my mind back from beef and cakes to our plans at hand. "Roman. Hi."

"I will admit, I have underestimated you," Roman said in lieu of a greeting, "Since the Battle of Light and Darkness began, there has never been records of Dark Signers being turned back to humans."

"That's not saying much," I chuckled.

The Crimson Dragon last battled the Ruler of the Netherworld five thousand years ago, back when writing first became a thing and were mostly done on walls with blood or something. I highly doubt any records about eight or so Dark Signers would survive to the present, for all I know, they could have all dueled naked*.

"But I can't help but wonder, if you have underestimated me also," He continued, ignoring my answer.

"What do you mean?" I asked.

"You're late," Roman said.

"Oh yeah, sorry about that," I scratched my head and apologized. I was late on purpose, trying to buy time for our break-in to pick up the Momentum.

"So, do you wanna duel?" I asked skeptically. I'm not that great at making conversation and it's not like people communicate through any other means in this messed-up world.

"I don't think that would be necessary," Roman replied smugly, "Though I understand that you're a Signer, and I would thoroughly enjoy destroying you when the time comes, our final face-off has not yet come to pass."

"So um…" What do you say to a brainwashed super villain? "If you didn't want to duel, why did you come at all?" I decided to ask a genuine question.

"Because you wanted me to come," the silver blonde replied naturally. "This is your plan, is it not? To get me out of the Old Reactor, so your team might sneak in."

"What?" My eyes widened in shock, "How did you know? Who told you?"

"My spiders are everywhere," Roman answered vaguely.

My brain went on hyperdrive trying to figure out who had access to this information and who might be brainwashed.

"Do you really think that I would neglect to protect the Momentum of all things?" Roman looked justifiably victorious. "The Old Momentum Reactor is the gateway that connects our two worlds, it shall welcome the invasion of the Shadows and usher in a new era of Darkness!"

It's the portal for the Ruler of the Netherworld to pass through, I translated mentally.

"It's beyond mortal reach, and you're a fool if you think you can destroy it and seal the entrance from which our Dark King would enter this realm!"

"Right," I nodded, "Yes, you're absolutely right."

Let's go with that. I knew he wouldn't suspect my ingenuous scheme of using his 'Dark King' as an energy source.

"I thought I'd humor you," Roman continued, "But it looks like your plan went poorer than I had envisioned." He gestured to the direction of the Old Momentum Reactor, I stared in horror at the smoke and light coming from that direction.

Zigzix assured me that once we got to the Momentum, he only needed half an hour, and he could remove the Core so quietly that even if Roman had been inside he wouldn't notice. We were about ten miles away.

Chaos put me on his motorcycle and rode towards the site of the explosion. I noticed Roman ride with us with a smug smile, pleased with my distress and not all all concerned about the safety of his 'Dark King'.

Maybe Felice is right and my plans aren't that great.

* * *

 **A/N:** Sorry this chapter is a little short, I couldn't quite decide what should happen next.

*The last Signer/Dark Signer battle happening naked is a very real possibility, in fact, it's the most likely possibility. If we assume it occurs in Egypt (hence Yami & the original series), and look up basic Egyptian attire five thousand years ago, the conclusion is almost inevitable.

Clothing had been expensive and the weather warm, so Egyptian treated clothing like we treat formal wear, only worn on special occasions. Most people walked around more or less nude even by today's standards. Also they were hairless (all over) for sanitary reasons…

This also applies to any duel in the original series that happened in ancient Egypt. The Pharaoh might be dressed, his priests possibly, but the rest of the people would be naked most of the time.

The more you know.

P.S. if can anybody didn't get it, Yuki was thinking about cannibalism.


	32. Divine

**Disclaimer:** I do not own YGO 5Ds.

 **A/N:** Please read this first.

It has occurred to me that in addition to sexual content (which I have arduously avoided for a reason I'll reveal eventually), a story might also have a higher rating for its description of violence/bloodshed, so I'm debating changing this story to rated M. There's one sentence in this chapter that I'm not entirely comfortable calling 'rated T'.

Things do get a little dark by my standards, which might be a lot less strict than your own.

You have been warned.

Also, the title of this chapter should be

 **What Actually Happens When You Try to Fight Somebody Reasonably Skilled At Wielding Giant Monsters While You Yourself Do Not Have Any Giant Monsters With Which to Fight**

Subtitle: Not as fun as it sounds when they want to kill you

But that wouldn't fit in the space they gave me.

* * *

The Old Reactor, now the headquarters of the infamous Dark Signers, stood at the centre of the land it eviscerated 17 years ago. Zero Reverse had left the building largely intact, but destroyed everything around it with a vengeance. There were neither human activity nor animals or even vegetation, a zone of complete flatness amongst which the tower stood, a monument to human hubris, or as I like to think of it, a giant middle finger from Fate to the human race.

The sun was just setting, its light entirely overshadowed by light from the duel monsters. Not duel arenas, duel monsters. And their much less impressive human owners.

Akiza stood in midair supported by vines from the giant plant that destroyed my ceiling a couple of weeks ago, Rose Tentacles (lv6, 2200/1200), a monster that, just like its namesake, was essentially a rose bush, except being three stories tall and able to move its vines (body parts?) for lethal attacks.

Divine was dressed impeccably in a dark green sweater vest over a black shirt, not a hair out of place despite Akiza's best efforts, and hovering effortlessly (as I later discovered, held in place by his duel monsters, Psychic Snail (lv4, 1900/1200).

Psychic Snail represented the most literal interpretation of the term 'monster'. It had the head of a squid and the upper body of a man, all of which emerges from the shell of a snail, as though it was a cheap imitation of Greek and Roman mythologies, which was already very lazy in imagining monsters simply by merging two or more existing animals together.

Artistic and aesthetic criticism aside, Psychic Snail stood just a little shorter than Rose Tentacles and spewed orange toxic sludge from both its mouth and the antennae on its head. Though a little weaker than Rose Tentacles by attack alone, it had the upper hand thanks to the stronger support from its owner.

"Akiza, you have to trust me," Sayer was saying, his eyes earnest with the desire to win her back to his side, "You belong with us and only with us. I can understand that you're young and you can't control your urge to run blindly into the unknown. I'll forgive your for that. Come back to us, and everything will be exactly the same as before."

"Please just go Sayer!" Akiza, rather than the Black Witch, pleaded, "There're people who love me here, I don't need you and I don't want to work for Arcadia anymore. I don't want to hurt you, but I won't go with you either. Please, just leave!"

"Just leave? Did you forget how I took you in from the streets, molded you, turned you into the Black Witch that you are now." Sayer's words quickly turned ugly, "They only want you for your powers. And you have gotten so weak in the past couple of weeks, where would you be when you're useless and mortal? You have nobody in this world, nobody except me!"

Akiza had weakened, but more importantly, she had been conditioned to fear him, to run from his attacks rather than fight for herself. That project seems to be a complete success.

"I don't need these powers filled with hatred, I have my friends now," Akiza said to her once-mentor, sincere in her comments (which I shall generously label as naïve), panting with over-exertion. "And I can finally stop being Black Witch and just be me!"

"You _are_ the Black Witch. That's who you are and that's who you'll always be." Sayer cooed soothingly, "Now come home, come back to me. Embrace your real self and your full potential."

* * *

Beside the all-powerful Momentum, beside the two psychic duelists and their giant monsters engaged in hardly-intense battle and almost friendly chatter, I found my team. Standing, sitting, lying down like on the otherwise lifeless landscape, surrounded by dull brownish scorched earth as far as the eye can see. Where there were seven people before, now I only count five.

Roman had chosen to stop a little further away, getting off his duel runner and sitting on the ground his legs stretched out in front of him and his arms supporting his weight from the back. He looked so relaxed all he was missing was popcorns and a large coke. But I didn't have time to deal with him now.

Chaos skidded to a stop also, temporarily engulfing us in a dust cloud.

Felice was sitting next to her duel runner, breathing heavily. A gash from her forehead was still dripping onto her white hair, now tied into a ponytail for convenience. Cyril and Galen laid on the ground beside her, semi-conscious with bandage wrapped around their head and abdomen respectively. Kalin was busy fixing his own runner, though I'm not entirely optimistic about his efforts, mostly because I'm pretty sure the engine was missing. Zigzix was curled up in the corner, sobbing quietly to himself.

"What happened?" I asked with a grimace, pretty sure I didn't want the answer.

"We got in but we couldn't even touch the Momentum," Felice gave me an ugly look, "It's covered by a layer of, a bright white goo that eroded everything it touched."

"It's the Dark Energy Roman speaks of, sourced from the Dark King," Kalin explained softly, "It assimilates everything it touches until there is nothing but Darkness left. I didn't think Roman would use its powers to protect the Old Reactor."

"So that's a 'no' on the Momentum," I concluded, a little discouraged. I did overlook Roman Goodwin for the most parts and focused on characters (to be honest) who had had more screen time. But in this world, lack of screen time doesn't at all reduce the threat the leader of the Dark Signer poses, there was a reason why he was chosen by both the Light and the Dark.

"But that's not my question, what happened?" I gestured vaguely to our surrounding, with monsters, explosions and lights (both from aforementioned monsters). And naturally, no sign of the Sector.

"He attacked Akiza before we could get out," Felice leaned wearily against her duel runner, "Trapped Vincent and Ara inside."

And therein lies in importance of fire escapes. That building probably violated a lot of zoning codes before Zero Reverse.

I strained my eyes and could vaguely see Vincent and Ara, just inside the Old Reactor entrance, blocked in by Sayer's monsters. Not that Sayer needed the hostages, he clearly had the upper hand in his fight with Akiza. Even from here, it was evident Sayer was just toying with them like a cat would a mouse before killing its captive for sport. I could hear Felice's teeth grinding.

"Come with me," The white-haired teen told Chaos, her eyes trained on the Old Reactor, "The Psychic Snail that Sayer has is bullet-proof and reacts faster than we do. But I don't think it can move. So if only one of us gets past it, we may be able to get them out."

"I'll go around Akiza and you go behind Sayer," Chaos assessed the situation quickly, presenting himself as the decoy to go in front of Sayer while Felice would sneak behind him.

Let me back up a little. Divine and Akiza stood (hovered) facing each other with their giant monsters in front of them. The Old Reactor was slightly behind Divine, to his left and Akiza's right. While we were standing across the battle field from it, to Divine's right and Akiza's left.

The reason I'm saying this is to explain why, at the time, it didn't seem like a crazy plan that we would physically outrun a giant mystical monster with untold powers and get people out of the Old Reactor. With any luck, Divine wouldn't notice us at all.

Felice struggled onto her duel runner with a grunt, shoving me aside, she raced off without another word. Chaos followed.

Sayer turned, catching the action from the corner of his eye.

"I challenge you to a duel!" Before Sayer could direct his attention to the two people who just left, I stepped up, shouting over the noise from both duel monsters, which was already covering the roaring of the engines. "If I win, you get out of the Satellite!"

Standing on the ground, I must have looked like an ant compared to the man controlling mythical beasts.

"You are joking." Came the greasy pretentious voice from the redhead, "I am Divine. I shall be the most powerful human in this world and I can take your lives any time I please. Why should I subject myself to a duel with you?"

That's... That's...That's so reasonable! Of course you can't expect somebody to give up their giant magical monsters and agree to the terms you stipulated in a children's card game. Oh god why did I think he'd agree? What's happening to me? I'm being assimilated! I'm becoming one of _them_!

Then again, things are so much more difficult when you can't resolve them using children's card games. I couldn't help wondering whether it would have worked if Yusei challenged him?

"And if you're the distraction, let's see what you're trying to hide." Divine turned away from me, focusing on Chaos instead.

Chaos was almost masterful in his control of his duel runner. He turned right sharply, passing almost close enough to touch Psychic Snail before making a quick dash for Akiza's Rose Tentacles, hiding himself under its unreliable protection. Psychic Snail opened its mouth and sent a stream of venom his way, hitting only the ground. Immediately, the entire layer of ground its venom touched disappeared, leaving only a pungent stench in the air.

Chaos was putting on the show of his life time. If there hadn't been so much at stake, I would have been entertained.

Divine watched, amused, safe in the knowledge that without thorough preparations well ahead of time, both him and his monster were untouchable for mortals.

I realized too late that the duel monsters are no longer limited by their master's control.

Psychic Snail's antennae twitched. Having much keener sense of hearing and smell, it noticed Felice's movements and alerted its owner.

"Tsk, tsk, tsk," Divine clicked his tongue, "Trying to sneak past me? That just won't do. Psychic Snail, Corrupting Toxic Strike!"

Psychic Snail spewed a torrent of orange venom in Felice's way. It looked like an oddly-shaped water gun, shaving several inches off the soil every time its venom missed the target. As its head turned to follow Felice, its attacks getting closer as she neared the Old Reactor.

So far at least, Magic still has a significant advantage over mortal technology. I racked my brain, finding that there was nothing I could do.

"Out of my way!" Felice made a mad dash for the Old Reactor. Ara opened the door and darted inside. Vincent stayed near the entrance.

So far, she had dodged all of Psychic Snail's attacks. There was one place she couldn't escape though. If she were to enter the Old Reactor like planned, she had to do so through the only entrance, and it's far too late to turn back.

Chaos had come out of his hiding place, trying and failing to attract the monster's attention.

The moment Sayer noticed Felice, she was doomed.

* * *

Ara stayed in the shadows, safe from the attack, watching as Felice leaned forward and lowered herself as much as possible on her duel runner to minimize the area of impact when Psychic Snail's attack would inevitably hit her.

A fool's errand from start to finish.

Felice closed her eyes as she entered the Old Satellite at the same time the attack did.

Vincent did the only thing he could. He jumped across the entrance, placing himself behind Felice as he pushed them both down to the ground on the other side of the entrance.

Felice's duel runner crashed into the far end of the wall, as did most of Psychic Snail's venom, but not before some splashed onto Vincent's back. He had been smart enough to cover himself in all the fabric he could find in the Dark Signer's residence. But this being the 'Dark Signer's' residence, he couldn't find much. All of it, as well as the clothes he had worn, were instantaneously dissolved by the venom.

Nonetheless, that's probably the only reason he wasn't dead right now, for better or for worse.

Ara made a face. If Vincent had asked her beforehand, she would have told him to skip the extra layers of protection so he didn't end up prolonging his own misery.

Felice crawled out from under Vincent as though in a trance. With her eyes staring directly ahead of her, she turned her head to look at her duel runner. It bore the blunt of Psychic Snail's attack and is now more rust than metal. She turned to look vacantly at Ara.

Vincent laid pronated on the ground. The skin on his back was gone, as was an increasing amount of muscle. His tissue melted away layer by layer, replaced by only the flat blackness of necrosis. There was very little blood, as though the attack alone had drained all life out of him that he now had none to spare.

"Why did you do it?" Ara found herself inexplicably jealous. In all her time, first in the Satellite then faking her way into Arcadia (for their high-calorie meal plans), she's never seen anything like this, let along being subject to such protection. He's a lost cause anyways, might as well satiate her curiosity before he dies.

"Don't be silly," Vincent grinned. Highly corrosive toxins immediately kill all nerves in the area, so he's not actually in very much pain, "It was me or her, what was I supposed to do?"

Vincent's voice was like a trigger that jolted Felice's brain back online.

She reached out, then immediately pulled back at Vincent's injuries as though she had been burnt.

"I'm going to kill him!" Felice screamed. "I'm going to fucking kill him!"

"No, no you're not," Vincent hissed, losing muscular support, his breaths were becoming labored. "You're going to go inside, and you're not going to come out until Sayer leaves. Then you're going to take Cyril and Teddy, leave the Satellite and never come back."

Felice shook uncontrollably, unable to agree to or reject the request.

"We'll get you to Domino," She said instead, "We'll get you to Domino and they'll treat you there."

And she was partly right. These injuries, however severe, was not fatal in Domino City, whose hospitals have an alarming amount of experience treating physical injuries.

But this isn't Domino City. Ara shook her head. Yuki had focused most of their efforts on preventative medicine, which she insisted was 'the most effective and most cost-effective' way to improve healthcare, especially given Satellite's lack of medical equipment and personnel.

So, right now, they could only watch Vincent die.

She decided against saying that. They were positioned inside the Old Reactor in such a way that Psychic Snail's attacks can't reach them, so for now, Felice had the luxury of irrationality.

Ara watched Felice crouched down and pull Vincent's arm over her shoulders, then barely managing to stand up under the weight. Vincent's lower body dangled powerlessly. The toxin had burnt through part of his spine so that his lower body stayed connected to the rest of him more through flesh than bone.

It's stupid of course, there's no way he'll survive long enough to get to Domino City, Felice was just making his last few hours more miserable.

Ara grabbed Vincent's other arm and together, they struggled deeper into the Old Reactor

* * *

"She lived? But that won't last for long," Sayer laughed derisively. "Let's see, I don't need this lump of slime anymore, I summon Psychic Jumper (lv2, tuner, 100/1500) and I tune my level 2 Psychic Jumper with my level 4 Psychic Snail to synchro summon, Psychic Nightmare (lv6, 2400/2100) !"

Psychic Nightmare was roughly dragon-shaped, in the same way that Stardust Dragon was 'dragon-shaped', with arms and legs that looked more human than lizard. It was blue overall, with energy surrounding it that even I could see.

I couldn't help but remember Black Rose Dragon could take this monster.

Rose Tentacles retracted its vines and surrounded Akiza like a cocoon, whether by instinct or by order, the move indicated its owner's intents very clearly.

"We have to go!" Kalin grabbed my arm. Grabbing hold of Zigzix with the other, he abandoned his runner and pulled me away from the battlefield.

"I can't," I shook his arm off, "Take Zigzix with you, give him to Yusei, Nervin will tell you why if you get out this alive."

"Don't be stupid, you're no good here." Kalin said.

"If I leave right now, I won't be good anywhere." I answered.

Kalin rolled his eyes and plopped down on the ground beside me.

* * *

"Psychic Nightmare," Sayer laughed, "Why don't you get those rats out of their hole. One at a time."

It all happened so quickly I am surprised I noticed anything at all. But I must have.

There was a loud snap, like popping of a champagne bottle, or prying apart pieces of a Lego.

Then his body caught my eye.

Unlike Psychic Snail, Psychic Nightmare had the power to move things with its mind.

Vincent's body floated out from the Old Satellite and was tossed into the air. Psychic Nightmare swept at it with its tail. His upper body bent unnaturally backwards from the chest up, so that it almost paralleled the rest of his body again.

Vincent's blood made an odd brownish trail in the dirt, like some lost language I can't understand, then quickly disappeared, seeping into the soil.

There was an overwhelming pressure and heaviness around my stomach. I bent down with my hands resting on my knees, retching until tears streamed down my cheeks. I tasted a bitterness in my mouth. Of course, nothing actually came up. Satellite rations are designed to be immediately absorbed so that nothing goes to waste.

"This is all your fault, Akiza," Sayer said victoriously, "None of these people had to die if you just came with me when I asked you so nicely." His Black Rose would be his and his alone, as soon as this Satellite ordeal is over.

Akiza remained shielded in the cocoon created by her Rose Tentacles, seemingly safe from the terrors of the world.

* * *

Ara shuddered as she accidentally looked at the bloody corpse. No, body, she reminded herself, not a corpse yet. Vincent's body landed in a contorted V, so that the ends of his hair, which normally reached just past his shoulder, almost touched the back of his ankles. Somehow, he's still holding on, his temporary half-life only made things worse.

"I'm going to kill him." Felice said with an eerie calmness, a promise to herself rather than talking to an audience. Her short nails dug into her palms, blood dripping down her hand and into the soil, disappearing as quickly as Vincent's did. "I almost managed it before, I can do it again."

"You mean you succeeded when battling the Black Witch," Ara corrected. "Psychic monsters have special powers physical attacks can't penetrate. Psychic Nightmare for example, has an ability called "Psychic Shield" that deflects all physical attacks. You won't be able to break its barrier."

"What else am I supposed to do?" Felice asked desperately.

That's a very good question, Ara gingerly took off her burnt sneakers, wincing delicately as her bare feet touched the ground. But a better question would be, what is Sayer planning to do with them?

If she knew Sayer and she did, better than she would have liked to, he was going to make an example out of them, using their lives as a warning to all who dared to befriend defectors from the Arcadia Movement. It would also have the added benefit of completely breaking the Black Witch.

While Ara had no sympathies for the Black Witch, she also didn't plan on using her life to further Sayer's plans. Plus, it would be a shame that somebody Vincent tried so hard to protect dead anyways.

She didn't like the only solution she could see, but there wasn't another way our. It's not like any of them, inside or outside this building, would survive this f Divine had his way. Not having any superpowers, there was only one thing she could do to defeat him.

"Nothing, there's nothing you can do. Nobody can get close to Sayer unless he lets them, and he wouldn't let you through," Ara's sigh was almost inaudible. "But he would let me pass."

She made several strategic cuts on her blouse and jeans, pulling her breasts up to reveal more cleavage. She almost smiled at Felice's horrified expression, a hint of envy cropping up again. Felice hadn't seen half the horrors of the Satellite.

"Give me two grenades," Ara requested. Felice handed them to her mutely, understanding but not quite wanting to acknowledge what Ara was about to do.

"Nicely done, my beast," Sayer's voice travelled from the outside, "Now let's get the next one."

"That's my cue," Ara smiled, "Do get out of the Satellite after this, it's no place for kids like you."

* * *

Psychic Nightmare dragged Ara out next.

"Divine! Help me!" Ara called for help before the monster could attack.

"So we meet again, my pet. I bet you regret deserting me now, don't you?" Sayer's eyes ogled her hungrily.

Ara floated out standing in midair, her hands clasped in front of her. The blue jeans she wore had a large slit along the left side, from the middle of her thigh to the middle of her calf. The ends of her blouse was tattered, revealing a flash of skin every time she struggled in vain against her invisible bonds. The top button on her collar was clasped, but two buttons just below that seemed to have burst open.

Even though this is much less skin than even Greiger shows on a regular basis, there's an allure of the rare and forbidden fruit, an angel fallen captive to the darkness. Ara knew that Sayer could see she was projecting this image on purpose, she also knew it would only help her case.

"Forgive me?" Ara smiled coyly, darting out a pink tongue to lick her finger, then running her index finger from her lips downwards, "I'll make it up to you." Sayer's ego wouldn't let him forgive her, but his vanity would compel him to gloat first.

Zigzix drooled, obviously forgetting the predicament we were in. Kalin snorted in disgust.

Personally, I don't blame her. We can never be sure what we'll do in a time of life-and-death until the time comes. And who's to say that her choice was wrong?

Sayer waved, his monster floated Ara close enough for her to be within his reach. And for him to be within hers. Ara put on her most charming smile, leaned forward and pulled the pin in her pocket.

Psychic Nightmare suddenly roared, instinctively sensing danger as it tried to drag Ara backwards again.

I saw only a flash of light from the explosion.

Sayer screamed. Psychic Nightmare had saved his life, but the explosion had taken his right arm nonetheless, sending a mist of red into the air. The pain had been enough to knock him out, his monster caught him in midair, but without orders, stalled in place.

A wave of dark energy swept over the field, enveloping first Ara then Vincent in its embrace. Raising their bodies from the dust into the air until they floated as high as the roof of the Old Reactor.

I stared dumbfounded. It took me a second to realize what was happening. As they neared death, they were being converted into Dark Signers.

* * *

 **A/N** : If anybody in the entire show is going to reject a duel because they don't want a duel ruining their chances of victory (unlike Rex Goodwin, Z-One and all three Aporias), it's Divine. And I had to have at least one case where somebody turns down a duel that would otherwise save the protagonists, but are entirely unnecessary for the villain. :D

Repeat after me, this is a happy story, this is a happy story, this is a happy story. Maybe if I say it enough times, people will believe me. XD Still, if nobody's crying after this chapter, which I don't think they are, I'm not doing this right, might rework it later.

To be fair, I tried several drafts of this chapter, the version where nobody died was _truly_ depressing. So, you know, Dark Signers.

Btw, does anybody know how to write a good meta-analysis?


	33. Revival

Disclaimer: I do not own YGO 5Ds

* * *

I looked hungrily at Vincent and Ara and the cocoon they were enveloped in as they were transformed by the Shadows, into 'death' as Kalin had put it. A living, breathing, conscious, immortal death; I turned my face up, blinking back tears.

"What do you think about my newest recruits?" Roman's voice sounded a few paces behind me, "You won the first battle when Kalin was released from the Shadows, but the war is far from over. For every one freed from the Darkness, two more shall join it."

I barely managed not to collapse.

"It was you?" I asked. My eyes trained on him, still glistening.

Roman looked away uncomfortably, not saying a word.

"It _was_ you!" I laughed out loud (LOLed doesn't quite capture it). Roman clearly had control over whom and when to convert Dark Signers, with him watching on the sidelines, it's hard to believe that he had nothing to do with Ara and Vincent's temporary, uh, let's say 'unlife'.

"I always try to add a personal touch to these battles," Roman continued, his voice containing much less malicious than his words might suggest, "Once your staunchest allies, now your deadliest foe, it'll make for quite a show when the time comes."

Right, he thinks I'm a Signer because of what happened with Kalin, I remembered vaguely. That's why he converted Vincent and Ara into Dark Signers, so they could duel me in his supposed 'final battle.'

I didn't care. I glomped him.

I buried myself in his chest (which I could just reach) and felt his shirt grow a little damp under my eyes, okay and my mouth. I can't help it, I drool a little when I cry. _I could suffocate myself in his pecs,_ I had time to muse before I was tossed roughly onto the ground.

"Listen!" I called out to the leader of the Dark Signer, not bothering to get up. I looked into his violet eyes, grinning like an idiot and never having meant anything more sincerely in my life. "I owe you. You don't understand what I'm saying yet, because you're crazy and that's okay. But keep this in mind. I owe you a favor. Feel free to call on it once you become sane enough." I might regret this later on, I probably will, but I don't care right now.

"You think a Dark Signer would ever need the good graces of a Signer?" Roman scoffed. He had a rich and husky voice, I noted, like melted dark chocolate that just drizzles off the tongue. "Next time we meet, I'll send you to my Master."

"Like I said," I must have cackled- I was still in the hysteria that sets in after a narrow escape from disaster. "You can't understand me right now, I'm not sure if you ever will. But if you do, and can still make contact at the time, call me and we'll talk. Within reason." I added on a second thought.

I stood up and reached forward to wipe the drool off of his shirt. His death glare stopped me. I pulled my arm back before quite reaching his shirt, and let them fall to my side awkwardly.

"Here." I took out Earthbound Immortal Ccapac Apu (lv10, 3000/2500) instead, "Take it."

Roman gave me a wide-eyed look in his confusion.

"Just in case you need to save somebody else." I grinned. "You earned it."

There're a number of reasons I could use to justify giving the card back to him, such as the later Dark Signers were incredibly weak and pose no threat (I mean Carly, really?). Or the fact that all of them would be defeated if I could just get my hands on the Momentum. Or he might try (and succeed) to get the card back from me by force, severely injuring the rest of us in the process.

But truth is, I just wasn't thinking very clearly at the moment. I wanted to do something as a token of my gratitude and that was the only thing I could think of. I think I mentioned before that I'm not great under highly stressful situations.

Roman's face contorted between bewilderment, disbelief and anger at being slighted.

"You seem to underestimate our powers," He said, grabbing the card out of my hand, "Let me introduce you, to the Dark Signers who would be your demise."

Vincent emerged from his cocoon unscathed except for his tattered clothing. I shot Roman an amused look that he clearly did not understand, so I explained.

"Where do you get your uniforms? I've been thinking of doing the same for my team for a while. I feel like it builds a sense of comradery." If Dark Signer uniforms aren't magically generated, which seems more reasonable than magical underwear, then it follows that Roman must have custom designed them and ordered them somewhere. Or maybe he just bought them off the rack at Minions Unform Co. ?

Roman breathed in deeply as though holding something back, and ignored my comment altogether.

Felice clung to Vincent's arm, Chaos, Kalin and Zigzix slowly encircled the pair cautiously. I would have done the same except for a distraction that caught my eye.

When Vincent came to, so did Divine. And Divine being Divine, he thought he'd try one last time before making his retreat. His monster again under control, Divine chose to directed the beast towards Roman, who was clearing the most powerful creature on the field.

The synchro monster Psychic Nightmare (Lv6, 2400/1600) roared, charging towards Roman. Roman took a step forward (while I took a step back) and held out a monster of his own. "Earthbound Immortal Uru (lv10, 3000/2500), heed my call!"

Psychic Nightmare froze in its tracks, like humans would naturally avoid the tracks of an incoming train, or prey would the scent of its predator.

Just like Kalin's summoning of Earthbound Immortal Ccapac Apu, a black pit formed in midair. Tendrils of purple light reached out from it towards the ground, starting from the Satellite and expanding to the rest of the world, picking up any soul it desires before retreating back into the darkness. With the energy it gathered, the spider Uru begins to form on the ground.

One such strand of purple reached towards Felice, she quickly released Vincent, instinctively pushing him aside before retreating herself. The light followed her as though with a life of its own, determined to get its victim.

"You can't escape the callings of the Immortals by running. Physical location means nothing to the other realm," Vincent drawled. Felice looked at him strangely, he continued. "But you _can_ escape. All it wants is a soul, _any_ soul" Before he finished his sentence, he grabbed the closest person to him, who happened to be Zigzix, and threw him into the light. The purple light paused, then accepted its newest prey and retreated.

All of this took place in the span of a few seconds. Earthbound Immortal Uru had just emerged into this world. For once, I wasn't afraid of a spider, it looked almost adorable and cuddly, with small beady eyes and eight furry legs. Spiders eat pests and kill mosquitoes, they're not our enemies. The giant spider shot out a web towards Psychic Nightmare, the latter of which was curled up into a tight ball in front of Divine, shaking from fear. The web quickly enveloped the dragon-shaped monster, Earthbound Immortal glided towards its captive gracefully, biting into the cocoon with its fangs, presumably to inject venom to dissolve its captive, then drink its corpse.

Okay, forget it, I take it back, spiders are horrifying.

Divine recoiled back in fear and pain from having his synchro monster destroyed, in the most literal sense of the word. Chaos didn't miss the opportunity this time to ride up to him and press a gun to his head. He reached for the trigger, then looked at me. As though getting some kind of message that I definitely didn't send, he turned his gun around, hitting Divine on the head with the butt of his gun, easily knocking out the leader of Arcadia.

That was normally Felice's job, I noted, turning my attention back towards the purple-eyed teenager, who was still recovering from seeing Vincent killing Zigzix.

"Wh-what, what was that?" She stuttered, uncertain how to frame her question, or even what her question was.

"What was I supposed to do?" Vincent shrugged, chuckling.

"You killed him!" Felice accused, then immediately regretted sounding so harsh. But what else was she supposed to sound like when Vincent just became a murderer?

"I'll do anything it takes to protect you," Vincent smiled, ruffling her hair softly, honestly not seeing the problem with his actions. Felice fell silent, the weight of his words and his life hanging over her.

"Then perhaps I should be honored I didn't receive the same treatment,' Ara interrupted as she walked up, just having been healed by the Shadows herself.

If this were an American cartoon instead of a Japanese one, my eyes would have popped out.

I swear the world fell silent for a second, either that or it was all the blood rushing to my head. Probably both. Her clothes destroyed in the explosion, Ara wrapped herself in Roman's black cloak. And from what I could see, _only_ in Roman's cloak. Its red trimmings brought out her cherry colored lips and the rose in her cheeks. Still barefoot, she stepped onto now-charred soil, looking enchanting and hypnotic, exactly like the vixen who would drag the world towards Darkness. Only she does it with card games (I presume) instead of temptation.

Chaos coughed and looked away. Kalin turned his head purposefully to stare at Roman. Personally, I've never been so sure of my own sexuality. If that doesn't turn me on, I'm straight as an arrow. And that's the highest compliment I could think of as far as female appearances go.

Vincent looked unimpressed, so did Roman. Must be the whole 'dead' thing, I thought a little maliciously.

"Don't flatter yourself," Vincent replied. "I couldn't kill you then because that knowledge would jeopardize the Magician's position in the Satellite," He shot me a look, "Thanks to Yuki's impractical sense of moralities. I still needed the protection of the Zephyrs then, but not anymore. Now that I'm a Dark Signer, I'm leaving the Zephyrs and taking the rest of the Magicians with me."

"We are? Where are we going?" Felice asked, slowly shifting away from Vincent.

"Anywhere," Vincent replied. "We only joined so we could get out of the Satellite, remember? Even if you don't like Domino City, I have enough power to take you anywhere in the world!"

"I thought you changed your mind," Felice looked up at him, her violet eyes brimming with uncertainty, "I don't want to leave, none of us do… We finally have a chance to change the Satellite for the better, help its people get back on their feet, repay the land that raised us-"

" _I_ raise you." Vincent cut her off flatly, "All three of you. And I don't want repayment, I want you guys to get out of the Satellite and get somewhere safe. It's too dangerous here. I know you think everything's going well, but that won't last." He turned to me. "Face it Yuki, the power got to your head. You went crazier faster than Kessler." Kalin blinked innocently but decided to keep his mouth shut.

What did he mean 'went'? I thought and said as much.

Vincent looked down at me. The scar he received from Akiza twisted and contorted with every word. I vaguely recalled him paying for the minimum treatment possible when he went to Domino City, more out of habit than anything else, leaving a scar bisecting the corner of his lips to the corner of his left eye. NOw the dark powers that saved him all but erased the scar, covering it with the red markings of the Dark Signers. "Do you really think that all of us were too stupid to see your plans to trap us in the Satellite? We could have all escaped weeks ago, but you were too afraid you'd be useless outside the Satellite, that you would lose the power that you already have. Did you have fun playing with thousands of lives in our little town?"

Oh, _that_. I only send people away from the Satellite when I'm confident that they would return. In Vincent's case for example, that involved having Teddy stay in the Satellite and under some surveillance. I'm not proud of it, but I doubt there'd be a Zephyr left if I didn't. Vincent, for one, would have left the first chance he got. And obviously, I can't have my team disintegrate. I need to keep some people to run and guard my death machine if I ever succeed in building it. Actually, now that I put it like that, I can sort of see why he might have thought the power had gotten to me.

"The Satellite will fall, Felice," Vincent said solemnly, turning his attention away from me, "If not by Yuki's own doing then because of her. A power-hungry duelist from the Satellite who can actually threaten Neo Domino City, the good Director would crush her as soon as it doesn't interfere with his games. Then the rest of this town be destroyed with her. I'm just another rat fleeing a sinking ship, and I'm begging you to join me."

"I won't abandon the Zephyrs like this. Don't you get it? It's the only hope I've ever had, it's the only hope most of us had ever had. A brand new Satellite, to live like Domino City without having to abandon everything we've known and loved," Felice's eyes sparkled, "Now I get to watch it become a reality, I'm never giving that up."

"You really think _she's_ going to make that happen?" Seeing as I didn't say anything, Vincent continued. Felice tried to drag Vincent away and stop the argument, he instead pulled her over to his side, "Another lying delusional egomaniac who cares about nothing and no one except her own goals."

"I'm not _delusional_ …" I protested half-heartedly.

"So Yuki has her flaws," Felice's tone made it clear that she suspected her own words to be a gross understatement, "We all do. But she's also the best chance the Satellite has, perhaps ever will have. I can't abandon that!"

"I don't give a damn about the Satellite if you're all dead." Vincent swore. He corrected himself reluctantly in an attempt to convince Felice, "Tono's trying to rule the Satellite, like every single one of them before her. She would fail, just like everyone else has failed, and drag the Satellite down with her. Look at the Zephyrs! It's not a team anymore, it's a cult!"

Well, I do have more followers now than I had followers on Twitter, I'm not sure if that's a good thing. Then again, it's probably not a big deal seeing as I only had six followers on Twitter.

"I don't actually think Yuki's trying to take over the Satellite," Felice grinned at me with more confidence than possibly she should have. "Even if she does, we'd do much more good if we were in the Zephyrs, then at least we could stop her."

"Don't be naïve," Vincent sputtered, annoyed. I could see his red eyes turning a little darker. "You don't know what's good for you! This is no different from the time you tried to stick your knife into the electric socket when you were five!"

"I've made up my mind, Vincent. The Dark Signers isn't where we belong." Felice smiled at the remembrance of her childhood mischiefs, but was resolute in her decision. "We've been a lot of things, but we're not murderers." She eyed Divine who was still lying unconscious on the ground, "Not mass murders like the Dark Signers I mean."

"It doesn't matter what Roman did, what matters is that I can get us out now. To live the life we've always dreamt of, deserved! I'm not going to let you rot in the gutters when the Zephyrs eventually crashes and burns."

"While leaving everybody else to rot?" Felice asked.

Vincent rolled his eyes.

"They're brainwashed," Roman held a hand on Vincent's shoulder before he could try to grab Felice and drag her into the Old Reactor. "Yuki Tono brainwashed them to believe her lies. Only by destroying her can your friends be freed."

I saw the red in Vincent's eyes grow darker, like a flame being tainted until all life was drained out of it. His eyes finally settled on a brownish red that reminded me of dried blood.

Fear flashed across Kalin's face as he remembered how he had been convinced by the same types of rhetoric during his time as a Dark Signer.

"Then what are we waiting for!" Vincent reached for his gun instead of his deck. I felt an inexplicable tinge of pride, I had taught him well.

"Not like that," Roman's grip tightened. "Join me, and I will show you the way. Soon, you can win your friends back."

Vincent glanced at Roman, finally nodding. I wonder if in addition to taking control over his soul (I think?), the Shadows was also eating into his IQ.

"You're very good at this," Ara commented with a sly smile on her lips. At Roman's alarmed look, she explained, "I'm more used to the influence of the Shadows, thanks to my first employer. Don't worry though, I'm sure it'll get to me soon."

"I'm sure it will," Roman agreed tersely, uncertain how to deal with a sane Dark Signer.

Distant rumblings signaled arrivals of Yusei and Demak, who had cut their duel short upon seeing the summoning of the Immortals. Crow, who had flanked Yusei for his duel (to shoot Demak in case things turned south) had left to distract Sector Security, so they didn't arrest us for public endangerment.

"Akiza!" Yusei spotted Tentacle Rose shutting Akiza off from the rest of the world, and immediately tried to get her to open up to the outside world.

"Roman." Demak nodded as he rejoined the ranks of the Dark Signers, reporting his findings succinctly. "He's stronger than me."

"Let's get back then," Ara smiled, "I can't wait to learn about my new powers."

Roman cast one last look at the Satellite before leading his Dark Signers into complete darkness. As the sun went down, newly-installed street lamps lit up, enveloping the Satellite in a man-made light it hadn't seen in the past seventeen years. Roman headed deeper into the Old Reactor without looking back, he had lost the right to long after the Light a very, very long time ago.

The Dark Signers disappeared into their hideout. Only Earthbound Immortal Uru stayed behind, sitting in front of the entrance and nomming on its dinner (of Thought Ruler Archfiend). I thought long and hard about it and decided not to try to go up and feed it as a gesture of thanks, in case it actually feeds on me. I guess Roman decidd to his security after what happened (by which I mean what we did to him), but with that adorable arachnoid guarding the entrance, the Old Reactor is off limits.

* * *

"Let's talk about something happier," Chaos smiled, dragging a struggling, bleeding Divine.

I turned my eyes to our other problem and felt my lips curl up. Apparently, Divine can't summon anything without commercially-printed pieces of paper on him, so we're safe now that he lost his entire deck in the explosion.

Felice looked at the Arcadia founder with a glint in her eyes that, as I was later told, mirrored my own

"No!" Yusei protested as he realized what we were about to do. "You don't want to do this, just let the Sector handle it."

"Get out of my way Fudo, I know exactly what I want to do." Felice shoved him aside.

"You're not a killer," Yusei insisted, "You're not like him, don't let yourself become one because of Divine. He's not worth it!"

Felice stopped in her tracks, debating between the weight of a human life on her hands and the pleasures in following her heart. As soon as she starts doing that, she's not going to kill anybody. After all, Vincent's not _really_ dead.

It was true main character rhetoric on Yusei's part, but I'm a lot harder to convince than Felice.

"Yuki," the crab-haired duelist persisted, "Don't do this! You don't want to be a murderer."

"I don't 'want' to be a murderer," I laughed, "That doesn't mean I won't be." I stopped in front of Divine, looking down at his fear and tear-stricken face. "Plus, who said anything about killing him?"

Yusei looked relieved but Divine shrank back as far as he could in Chaos' hands. He obviously understood me

"Akiza!" He shrieked, all of his previous pretenses had evaporated into genuine fear.

"What do you plan to do then?" Akiza just left the protection of her monsters, standing uncertainly beside her former mentor.

"Well, this and that, mostly just making sure he can't hurt anybody again." I smiled gleefully. I could lie, but I felt like being honest right now. It's the adrenaline from watching your friends almost dying. "All I can promise is he will live a very long life, and he will be begging for death during every second of it."

"You can't stop murders with murder," Yusei said like a true anime protagonist, "It's the wrong thing to do no matter who does it! If he's a criminal, then let him be tried by the law and now your own idea of what's right!"

 _I can't stop murders, but I can stop murderers,_ I mentally corrected, but now's not the time for petty arguments. Now that access to the Satellite Old Reactor is cut off, I need some reliable way to defeat the Netherworld monster, i.e. not using card games. "I will hand him to the Sector if you two do something for me."

"If you ever need anything, you can just ask." Yusei sounded a little hurt.

"Well," I scratched my head uncomfortably, "This is sort of a big favor. I'll let you know by tomorrow." Truth is, I don't know the exact plans myself yet, only a vague idea of what needs to happen.

"Sure," Yusei agreed without thinking. Akiza nodded too after some time.

"You can't be serious!" Felice asked, "It's one thing to not kill him but another to let him go!"

When it comes to Divine, releasing him into the custody of Sector Security is as good as releasing him into the streets of Domino City.

"If that's what it takes. I have to focus on the future rather than the past." I gestured to Yusei, Chaos tossed the leader of Arcadia towards Yusei, who caught Sayer effortlessly.

"I'll get him to the Sector," Yusei got onto his duel runner with Akiza, "I'll see you tonight."

Sector Security still hadn't shown up despite giant flying monsters and flying humans, supposedly focusing all their energy on chasing Crow. You have to wonder what they teach these guys at orientation.

"So, should I track him down or do you want Felice to do it." Chaos waited till Yusei was out of sight to ask.

"What?"

"When Sayer escapes from Sector custody." Chaos said in a self-evident tone. "I assume that's what you meant. You said you would let him go, you never mentioned you wouldn't get him back."

"Good point," That actually never occurred to me but I'm always open to new suggestions, "Lock down the Satellite, send out everybody currently on standby. Divine just lost an arm, he shouldn't give you too many problems. If they take him to Neo Domino, get him out before then."

Felice's eyes brightened up. "I want him alive," She said.

"I'll see what I can do." Chaos agreed.

* * *

Roman rubbed his metallic arm with his remaining human hand, as though to imitate the warmth of human touch. It's been at least 17 years since Zero Reverse and at least that long since he's felt something alive. Roman reached for the card he received, 'Earthbound Immortal Ccapac Apu', toying the gift between his fingers. That's not to say he hadn't received presents in the past, either to gain his favor or avoid his wraths, but never out of pure gratitude. After all, why would anyone thank the man who would doom this world?

He realized too late as a sliver of dark energy invaded his body. Roman desperately tried to throw the card away, but it stuck to him, the Shadows channeling its powers to him through its servant, until it took over him completely.

'Roman Goodwin' entered the Dark Signers' headquarters with a sigh of relief. Finally, _finally_ the human is defeated. That human had thwarted his plans since the very beginning, when he cut off his own arm to give the mark of the Crimson Dragon to Rex Goodwin. Over and over again, that man had dominated their actions in the last seventeen years. Really, with their brainwashing powers, they could have taken over the world by now! Instead, they're trapped underground in the slums of a single city.

Thanks to the Crimson Dragon's recent decline in powers, he had been able to rise and finally take full control of this mortal. Today was perhaps that mortal's last time controlling their body, just to 'save' two people. How utterly foolish. Humans are irrational creatures in general.

Nonetheless, that just makes his job easier. Now that the human is all but dead, the Dark Signers and the Darkness shall rise once again.

* * *

"Are you okay?" Galen asked just as the sun rose over the horizon on a Saturday morning, an unreasonable hour for anybody to be awake. But the Fortune Cup is scheduled for the coming Monday, and with everything I still need to get done, I might not sleep until them.

"I should be asking you that, you're the one who got hit on the head." I looked up with a tired smile.

"But you look worse than I do. What do you need?" He cut to the chase, still worn-out from the previous day's incidents.

 _Sleep_ , I need sleep. I had been reflecting on the mistakes I made in underestimating people in this world, then planning for how I would get the Momentum from Neo Domino City.

"I need you to take all of our available capital and bet it on Yusei winning the Fortune Cup as soon as possible." We can do that now snice Zigzix hacked us into the Domino City network.

"You want us to bet on Yusei and not yourself?" Galen asked with a surprised chortle.

"I'm not planning on winning," I have a much bigger prize in mind. "You know what you have to do in the Satellite?"

"Yeah," Galen replied, "Meet up with Crow when the time is right to pick up the Momentum."

That sums it up pretty well, I nodded approvingly.

Nuclear weapons, I mean Momentum, I mean Fortune Cup, here I come!

Right after finishing up more paperwork.

* * *

 **A/N:** As far as humans go, Roman's powers are without a single doubt the most powerful. He can brainwash an unspecified, but definitely significant number of people, judging by the scene when they started expansion in the Satellite by literally brainwashing the masses. So he could have, very realistically and even very easily, taken over the world by simply gaining control of the right people, and probably kill all the Signers who would be difficult to defeat in a duel. But for 17 years, the Dark Signers stayed mostly anonymous. Do you realize how wasteful that is of a perfectly good superpower?

Yes, I want brainwashing powers even more than I want the ability to summon duel monsters. Okay, maybe about the same. :P

Also, sorry this took so long, next chapter shouldn't take as much time.


	34. Saturday

**Disclaimer:** I do not own YGO 5Ds.

* * *

I arrived in Neo Domino City late Saturday afternoon. Technically, I was invited rather than being arrested this time, though there was no practical difference. Four security officers escorted me into Rex Goodwin's office before retreating, I heard the distinct click of the door being locked behind me.

"Yuki," Rex Goodwin stood up and walked around his desk to greet me with outstretched arms. His smile looked slightly more sincere than last time; to be more precise, he put more effort into faking the smile than he did last time because he now thinks I am a Signer. "I'm glad you made it."

"So am I," I didn't bother hiding my exhaustion and dropped into the very comfortable sofa, "Met quite a bit of trouble as you know. You really need stop arming your security forces with trading cards and duel disks, so they wouldn't be completely useless when anything comes up."

"Yes, well." Goodwin left the comment, "Can I get you a drink?"

"I wouldn't say no to a scotch," I replied out of sheer habit, "And make it double."

Goodwin raised an eyebrow at the request, silently reminding me satellites probably never tasted alcohol in their lives. Oh well, I've been needing a drink for the past month, and I deserve one after the night I just had. There're easier ways for him poison me. Goodwin obliged and handed me a glass.

He placed his own glass on the table without touching it, "Now that you're here, I thought we might get to the reason why you came."

"You mean Fortune Cup?" I asked surprised, not sure if it was a rhetorical question.

"The Fortune Cup is why I wanted you here, but that's not why you came is it?" Goodwin replied with a candid smile. "I realize there isn't much Domino can do at this point to your little venture at the Satellite-"

"You're too humble," I said sarcastically. Modern life is interdependent in a million and one ways. As a tiny island off the coast of a slightly larger island, the Satellite is highly dependent on the rest of Domino and the world to survive. For one thing, we don't produce food.

"Well," Goodwin smiled again, this time I actually saw the laughter in his eyes, "You catch more flies with honey than vinegar, as they say. I apologize for the crude analogy but I must ensure that everyone in my tournament performs to their utmost potential next week. So I have a proposal for you."

"I'm listening," I replied.

"I know you've been looking for information on the Momentum, so if you win the Fortune Cup," Rex Goodwin smiled, "Or performs to my satisfaction during the event, I don't see why I can't lend the Momentum to the Satellite for the time being."

"Perform to your satisfaction?" I repeated skeptically.

"I need to confirm the identities of the five Signers, as you well know." Goodwin replied.

So he wanted an incentive to make sure my Signer mark would show up, at which point he promises to hand me the Momentum. I'm not sure if he'll hold up his end of the bargain, but it wouldn't matter because I can't hold up mine.

"I heard about the replica you built, but Zigzix cannot build the Core, so it's still useless," Goodwin looked amused, "I don't see why I can't lend the _actual_ Momentum to a Signer controlling the Satellite."

It felt strange, Goodwin noted, to offer genuine help with no ulterior motives. But this girl is doing exactly what he had wanted to but could not do while he was in the Satellite. Watching her success, however brief it will be, would be like fulfilling the dream that crashed when he fell off Daedalus Bridge.

"Thank you Goodwin-sama!" I was generally pleased with my faked enthusiasm. I had to pretend to be enthusiastic because technically, he's offering to lend me the Momentum. Since he honestly thinks that I was a Signer, and expects the mark to show up on my arm.

But I'm not!

Even though every other human being thinks otherwise at this point, I'm not a Signer.

I gulped half of the drink in my hand, nearly choking on the toxic fluid before remembering this wasn't the body I was used to. In the flash of pain, it also escaped my mind that my brain didn't build up any alcohol tolerance yet. Busy with my own plans, I missed the glint in Rex Goodwin's eyes when he looked at the drink in my hand.

"Now, the reason I wanted to speak to you is far more urgent." He paused to make sure he had my full attention, which is nearly impossible when I've had half a drink in me (this body is 4'8 with no alcohol tolerance). I must have faked it well enough, he continued regardless, "Now that you've proven yourself to be a Signer, there're some things you must know."

"Huh?" I looked up agreeably if a little lost, ready to humor him now that he had (technically) offered Momentum as the reward for my cooperation.

"Zero Reverse," Rex Goodwin said meaningfully, "What happened seventeen years ago and what is to come. I'm sure you already got an inkling of it in the Satellite."

"From your brother," I added naturally, biting down on my tongue a little too late.

I should mention that I'm a talkative drunk. And not the kind that talks nonsense. I'm a little slower, but my brain remains entirely functional, the only part offline is the part that tells me what _not_ to say.

"My brother?" Rex Goodwin repeated, truly alarmed for the first time since I met him. He bristled up, towering over me even while sitting, "And how did you come to know this?" He didn't bother denying my assertion.

"The family resemblance is uncanny?" I said while searching desperately for a better excuse, "And Sayer tends to ramble when he's threatened."

Goodwin looked down briefly, his eyes unreadable, before looking up again. "There're many things I don't know about you, clearly nobody does." He paused while I squirmed a little, taking another sip to hide my discomfort. Rex Goodwin refilled my glass casually. "But I have no interest in your sources of information right now. A far greater threat looms around the corner and we need your help to stop it. You are aware?" He decided whatever else, everything else, can be treated as inconsequential as long as it didn't distract from his plan. Once he succeeds, none of these trivial problems would matter ever again.

"Uh-huh," I nodded, "Dark Signers."

"That is correct. You have already defeated one Dark Signer, there will be others. Unless they are all defeated, our entire world will fall to the Shadows. It's your duty, no, your _Fate_ as a Signer to face this great Evil." He stood up facing me, put his right hand on his left breast and bowed solemnly, "I'm asking you, Yuki, for all of humanity, to shoulder the burden Destiny has laid upon you."

I tilted my head back and squinted a little looking at him, feeling generally sulky and offended. He's appealing to my pride, the same thing he did with Jack. I thought I was better than Jack and deserved more consideration. Drunk me waited for over ten seconds before motioning for him to straighten up again. I could see the anger in his eyes, but I knew he thought he needed me too much to do anything about it.

"Defeat all Dark Signers so people don't keep disappearing around the Satellite. Yeah, I got the memo." I replied sarcastically, "What do you have to do with it?" The ignorance in that question is obviously fake, given that I knew his relationship with Roman. Rex Goodwin acted like he didn't notice.

"I don't know how much you know already," Goodwin said, staring out the window vacantly as though looking at something only he could see. "Seventeen years ago, Professor Fudo unleashed a powerful force of Evil when he created the Momentum, and it took hold of my brother."

I smirked. Rex Goodwin is choosing his words very carefully, probably not sure how much I know or how I know it. Goodwin finished his drink as though pained by the memory, an act that had led me to unconsciously do the same.

"Roman had taken control of the project by then, Professor Fudo had tried to lock Pandora back into its box, but it was too late. So he sealed the destructive potentials of the Momentum into five cards, and asked me to gather the five Signers who would inherit this power to fight the forces of Darkness when the time comes." Goodwin said, turning to face me, "The time has come."

"I have been trying to locate the Signers for years, so they may join forces and defeat my brother. You are one of the Chosen, Yuki," Goodwin looked suspiciously at the teenager finishing her third drink, wondering how much she would remember or even be able to process. "You must fulfill your destiny and battle the Dark Signers in a duel. I love my brother, but Roman must be defeated, for the Evil he unleashed and will unleash again onto this world."

"I don't know, Roman isn't all that bad," I slurred. Seeing as Roman just save two people I knew, I couldn't help defending him, "You should know. Okay, okay. So imagine if you were working on the project of the century that would produce unlimited energy at no cost at all, eradicate poverty worldwide, bring about harmony and prosperity to the human race forever and ever and so on and so forth."

Rex Goodwin gave me a look, right, he was actually there.

"Anyways, so you guys almost succeed when the lead scientist is suddenly like, 'we're scraping the project once and for all. Because of the weather.

Because we always get bad weather when we do these experiments, I decided the power plant we built must be causing crazy climate changes throughout the world, even though we have designed nothing to that effect and I have no idea how that might happen.

In addition, even though I'm determined to shut this machine down at all costs in spite of its potential to change humanity forever, I have unnecessarily designed an unlocking mechanism in the form of five children's trading cards.'

At that point, are you really at fault for taking the project away from him?" I finished in a giggling mess on the couch.

Imagine if somebody at NASA discovered a machine that would let the human race prosper on Mars, then locked it up so it could only be opened with specific Pokemon cards. Would his assistant really be at fault for taking the project away from him?

I thought what I said was reasonably funny and waited accordingly for laughter. Instead, Goodwin scrutinized me with a cryptic look.

"What would you have done then?" He asked.

"I dunno," I admitted, still laughing at my own joke, "Probably try to take over the world with it." Drunk me said reasonably, my unconsciousness convinced that I still lived in a world where comments like 'taking over the world' would be recognized as a joke.

"I see," Rex Goodwin said. He had not expected the darker side of the Light of the Satellite, but it really shouldn't come as a surprise. If even Roman had fallen victim to the darkness of his heart, nobody can be immune.

It looks like Yuki Tono's unexpected intoxication might come to his advantage. He had decided against drugging any of the Signers for fear of angering the Crimson Dragon, but luring her to her own undoing was entirely fair game. "And what do you think about Yusei?" He grasped the opportunity to get more information out of the Signer.

"I'd hit that." I responded. Four drinks in, I saw nothing out of the ordinary with discussing this topic with Rex Goodwin, "I feel like Yusei's just gonna be really good time you know, like he'd do everything you like and worry about how to make you feel better and all that. See, it goes Yusei, then Kalin a very distant second, Jack a close third, and Crow' still too young so he's off limits. I mean I can't anymore, obviously, not with him and Akiza and all. I like her, she's adorable. But that does mean Yusei's off-limits, which is too bad..."

Goodwin stared, almost choking on her response. That was not quite the type of answer he had in mind.

"What about your own gang, Organization Z I think they call it?" Rex Goodwin did wonder about Tono's attitude towards many other potential Signers, but thought he'd stop asking about people for a while.

"Ugh, don't remind me," I finished the rest of the shot at the thought. "Should've just gone with Team Rocket."

Rex Goodwin took the glass away, feeling like that's quite drunk enough.

"You know, you should join us!" My eyes lit up as the 'brilliant' idea occurred to me. I always sort of liked Goodwin. Let's be honest, I was never the 'sacrifice myself to save the world' type, I doubt many people were in my reality. In Goodwin's place, I might have made the same decisions he did, if not worse.

"I what?" Goodwin's metal hand twitched, crushing the glass in his hand.

"Join us!" I continued obliviously, "You know, I just realized how hard it is to run a place? And it's, like, really, really hard. Then you have to run all of Domino! We need somebody like that, to, you know, do the work." I laughed sheepishly. Truth is, running even a start-up company (which I still insist that we are no matter what anybody says) is really, really hard when you're stuck with an illiterate workforce and barely literate management team.

Rex Goodwin blanked at the incoherent offer, feeling more tempted than he thought possible. His human hand shook as he cleared away the mess. But it's all too late now.

Ten years ago, he had made a pact with Yliaster. They would provide him with the technology necessary to build a bridge connecting the Satellite with Domino City, in exchange, he would act as their pawn in Domino City, preparing for and preventing the inevitable. He had naively thought he might actually build the bridge, the last thing he would do for the Satellite before abandoning it forever.

"Maybe before Zero Reverse," Rex Goodwin replied with a rueful smile that the green-haired duelist completely missed. Before he knew about Yliaster, before the Ruler of the Netherworld, before even the Crimson Dragon. Before he knew gods used this world as a battlefield, and the entire dimension might crumple at the whim of the supernatural. Before all of that, he would have followed her to hell and back.

"Why? You know I don't know exactly what happened in Zero Reverse? It was all very vague." I was immediately led off on the tangent. 'It' was referring to the anime of course, thankfully Goodwin thought I was referring to the censors he's put on the information.

"You want the whole story?" Goodwin laughed lightly at the idea.

He looked down at the teenager curled up harmlessly on his sofa, looking marginally interested, half drunk, and almost certainly not going to remember any of this in this morning, and felt safe in telling the whole truth for once.

"Have you seen the apocalypse, Yuki? I have." He began softly, talking more to himself than anybody else.

"There was first a light, then the sky collapsed and everything went dark. Mortals struggling to fight powers beyond their comprehension, failing like they knew they would, it was laughable, it would have been laughable if it wasn't for all the blood. Just blood, everywhere, I thought every person in the world must have been drained dry!" Rex said with an uncharacteristic vehemence, the recollections affecting him more than he expected.

"Uh-huh," The green eyes that looked at him struggled to stay open with some difficulty, clearly not having heard a word he just said. He continued nonetheless.

"I had managed to escape our Research Facility for what we now call the Satellite, and I stood at the shore watching the City burn. Watching its people bleed. They ran around in circles like rats, wondering if it was divine punishment or natural disaster. That day, I was the only one who saw the world fall apart and understood why.

Sometimes, I think I still am."

His monolog was interrupted by quiet snoring on the sofa, his only audience had fallen sound asleep while he was talking. She fell asleep, leaving herself defenseless against somebody who had wanted her harm only weeks ago. If this woman is from the Satellite, he went to clown college.

Of course, Yuki's logic went 'if he wanted to kill me, I'm screwed anyways, why bother', and that's a little beyond Rex Goodwin's understanding at this point.

Rex Goodwin shifted awkwardly, looking furtively, even guiltily around, then positioned himself behind the sofa, as though he was on the same side as the woman sleeping on it, as though he had succeeded in leading the change in the Satellite ten years ago. As though he was still Good.

In another life, he might have completed that bridge. In another life, he might build the Satellite up from shambles. Another life where he was the hero.

But not this one. In this life, he has two gods to fight.

And then he would be god.

* * *

Ara wore a light blue sweater under an oversized tracksuit of a similar color, sitting on the table with her feet dangling off the sides, eating a bucket of fried chicken with her bare hands. Her hair was cut to slightly longer than Roman's, the cut strands were collected and organized carefully at the side of the table.

"I'm going to strangle Sayer with it," Ara followed Vincent's eyes to the pile and explained casually.

Vincent had to do a double take. It _was_ Ara. The same attractive features, perfect figure, flawless skin. But in the hour he had left for his first duel, she made the transformation from a beautiful swan to ugly duckling.

"Are you okay?" He asked cautiously.

"Never been better!" Ara turned and greeted him with a toothy smile. She hopped off the table, wiping her hands on the Dark Signer cloak she was using as table cloth.

"Do you want me to get you something else to wear?" Vincent asked again.

"What, this?" Ara laughed. Not the soft smile or flirtatious grin he had seen from her previously, but a full-throated roar of laughter. "Don't you dare! This is actually comfortable. If my old clothes hadn't been destroyed, I would have burned them myself."

"I don't need the power of seduction anymore, I have real power." She explained with a smirk.

"Real power?" Vincent repeated. "I thought you were in Arcadia?" And he had been jealous of psychic duelists' powers for years. '

"But I was never psychic," Ara shrugged, "I lied my way into their training program before I could starve to death in the Satellite. They finally gave up on me when they realized I was never going to be a psychic duelist."

Ara made light of the matter but Vincent immediately tensed up. Arcadia takes in hundreds of people from Satellite every year to train into psychic duelists, she's the first he's heard of who left the program without becoming psychic or dead.

"I think you never looked better." He complimented sincerely. Ara had a life and energy about her that he never even seen while she was in the Zephyrs.

"Thanks. Oh wait, I couldn't care less what you think." Ara grinned, getting up to look for more food now that she could afford it.

Vincent glanced at Ara stuffing her face, Demak grooming his pet monkey, and thought back to whatever it was that possessed Roman, who is now determined to use trading cards to defeat mostly unarmed teenagers instead of literally anything else.

"I have a feeling this is more messed up than my last team," he muttered to nobody in particular.

* * *

"I always knew this baby would take me into Domino City," Crow patted his duel runner, his laughter echoing in the sewers, "Never thought it'd be legal though."

"Technically, it's not legal until we get there," Yusei reminded him seriously. "Remember, we have permits to stay in Domino, but we're still riding under the radar when we get there through the garbage chutes and we only have three minutes."

"Yeah, yeah. You've said it a hundred times already Yusei," Crow dismissed his concerns, "Don't worry about it, let's go already."

"I'm glad I'm sharing this ride with you," Yusei turned to his friend and said seriously.

"Me too. I always knew you'd make it, if it helps." Crow scratched his nose. If not quite under these circumstances.

"Let's go," Yusei glanced at his duel disk (now with the highly-advanced function of a watch), "Domino's waiting."

* * *

* In the sub but not dub version (I think), Lazar is seen speaking to Yliaster, making it clear that he was at least spying on Goodwin. I personally thought it sounded more like Lazar was poised to replace Goodwin when he gets the chance.

 **A/N:** Yay! Plot! Do you feel the plot coming? :P


	35. Sunday

**Disclaimer:** I do not own YGO 5Ds

 **A/N:** When a segment is about a certain character, it would be in their POV, thus their conclusions may or may not be correct.

* * *

It's another beautiful Sunday morning in Neo Domino, the entire City is abuzz with preparations for the upcoming tournament scheduled for the next day. No doubt Rex Goodwin would make a small fortune off of the aptly named Fortune Cups.

Mina stepped inside one of the many penthouses in central Domino, designed to host only the best duelists in the world, to find a teenager sprawled out on the king-sized bed, drooling and snoring, hugging her pillow like a teddy bear.

"Hmm?" I felt somebody in the room and looked up blearily, "Morning Mina."

"Good morning, Yuki-sama," Mina smiled and sat down on the chair beside the bed. Now that her Jack is spending a lot of time with that so-called reporter Carly, not that she minds at all, she reminded herself, Mina had been temporarily reassigned to this far less attractive duelist.

"Yuki's fine," I hid under the covers, then realized there was no point. I was so tired last night I didn't even bother getting undressed, so I rolled out of bed instead.

Nope, definitely not her Jack.

Mina stopped short of touching me, giving me a quick once-over then grimaced. I don't blame her, I was still wearing the same clothes from Friday night and forgot to shower last night. She handed me the bag in her hand and I went into the bathroom to shower and change.

"You know Yuki," She said through the door, "You would be very pretty if you just paid a bit more attention to how you looked."

"Don't be ridiculous," I dismissed her idea even as I changed into the jeans and t-shirt she brought. "I look adorable regardless."

"I'll be your assistant for the duration of the Fortune Cups" Mina said as I stepped back into the room, she sounded so professional and reliable that I was jealous of Jack. "Anything at all you need, just let me know."

"There is something actually." I replied while drying my hair on a towel, "I've been meaning to get some shopping done while I'm here."

"Sure," Mina agreed with a smile.

"I even brought a list!" I extracted the crumpled piece of paper (paper!) from my jacket and handed it over to her.

"830kg of fluoride," Mina saw the first item on the list with some surprise.

"For toothpaste, it's so expensive to buy the finished thing."

"5.8 tons of glycerin."

"Moisturizer," I supplemented, "And dynamite, for construction. But mostly moisturizer."

"Right… 38 trucks."

I thought that was self-explanatory. Now that we have functional roads, we can have and need larger vehicles on the road as opposed to only duel runners to meet the rising consumer demand.

"62 fridges, 83 microwaves, 29 washing machines and one coffee maker?" Mina continued skeptically.

"Nervin need the parts and I need coffee," I hid my apprehension under a cheeky grin.

"That's a lot of stuff…" Mina didn't notice, nor did she bother reading the rest of the list.

"It's cheaper to buy from Domino, there're no tariffs and now I get free shipping." I offered the prepared response jokingly.

It's true of course. There's technically no tariffs between Domino City and the Satellite, because it's illegal for any private firms from Domino City to sell any commercial products to the Satellite, and you obviously don't tax illegal commercial activity. So with Mina shipping everything over, everything's at a steep discount.

"I can get everything shipped to the Satellite in a couple of days." Mina said.

"I assume Director Goodwin wouldn't consent to the shipments until I'm done the Fortune Cups, so I'd like it shipped immediately after if you don't mind," I said. Leaving Mina to fill in the blanks.

"Of course," she nodded, "I'll ship it as soon as your duels are done."

* * *

"What do you think? Not bad, huh?" Crow paraded around in the standard-issue, surprisingly-not-stolen Sector uniform, admiring himself in the mirror, "I look even better than usual."

"You look flawless." Blister replied, a compliment more to his own work than Crow. Blister is in his early thirties, he had brown hair and brown eyes, wearing a green jacket over a white shirt. He's a friend of Tanner's, who in turn is the former professional duelist Yusei met in the Facilities. Literally a friend of a friend, upon whom Yusei had entrusted the success of this operation, which Blister had no idea about.

"Always do," Crow smirked, pushing the hat down so it covered all of his ball of orange hair.

"And what're your name?" Blister quizzed.

"Woody Chase," Crow replied, grumbling, then continued to recite the rest of his backstory without being asked, "I'm 19 years old, I was born in Domino but moved around a lot with my parents when I was a kid. I settled in Domino to apply for the Duel Academy but was rejected because of my criminal record. Really? You're not even going to let me into duel academy?"

"Then they'd have a record of you, and they don't." Blister dismissed. "Just be glad I changed your criminal record to Tokyo and still managed to get you the job." He motioned for Crow to continue.

"So I sent my resume in to the Neo Domino Research Institute and am now an honorable member of the Neo Domino Security Force." Crow did a sarcastic mock salute.

"Remember, your ID only grants you level 2 access, so if you want anything more, you'd have to sneak around a bit." Blister ignored his antics.

Crow nodded with a grin, 'sneaking around' is his specialty. As opposed to working for Domino, which he never thought he'd do in his life.

"Alright, you're all set," Blister examined Crow's paperwork for the last time, "Now run along, you don't want to be late for your first day."

Crow waved, feeling inexplicably excited for his first day of work. It must be what first day of school would have felt like, he reasoned.

Blister locked the door behind him, seeing him off from the window.

"The Satellite thanks you for your services," Chaos emerged from a room off the side, handing Blister a check.

While Yusei would trust his new friend of a friend completely, enough to rest the success of the entire operation on Blister's morals, those from the Satellite are much more practical, or at least cautious.

Blister whistled when he saw the number. "You're really doing well for yourselves, huh?"

"This includes the down payment for your next task," Chaos said instead.

Five minutes later, a loud screech can be heard outside Blister's apartment.

" _What do you mean you want me to drug a ten-year-old_?"

* * *

Yusei rode his duel runner from the pier towards an area in Domino City called the 'Tops', as per Yuki's request.

He had come with Crow to Domino City via the tunnels to cover for the other Enforcer in case they were caught. Now that Crow had arrived undetected, he had agreed to check on two children named Leo and Luna.

As part of her deal in releasing Divine, Yusei had agreed to look after the two kids until the Fortune Cup, which was literally a day away.

Because they were linked to him by Fate. According to Yuki.

Even by Yusei's standards, that's a little farfetched.

He knows Yuki is hiding something, he also knows she means him no harm, and that's enough for now. He would give her time to figure the rest out.

Yusei flashed his temporary Domino ID that was given to him for the purpose of the Fortune Cup tournament, and was granted access inside.

Following the directions Blisters gave him, Yusei rapped gently on the door.

"Um, hi?" A green-haired girl no older than ten opened the door with a shy smile. "Can I help you?"

"My name is Yusei," He replied, "I'm a friend."

"Who is it, Luna?" A cheerful voice followed its equally cheerful owner, a ten-year-old boy who immediately appeared at the door.

"I don't know Leo," Luna replied with the innocent cautions typical of her age, "A friend?"

* * *

"This is the last time I'll help you." Akiza said, her voice shaking, her eyes glued to the ground. She wasn't sure if she couldn't stand to look at Sayer anymore, or if she couldn't bear to look at him in his current state, injured, broken, lost, just like she had been when he found her.

She had found him when the Zephyrs were trying to kidnap him from Sector Security, unconscious and bleeding profusely. She wouldn't have, except she knew what the Zephyrs planned to do to Sayer if they got their hands on him.

"Your deck burnt up, but I'm sure you can find something once you're back in Domino City. I got you something you can use in the meantime."

Sayer fanned the cards out with his remaining left hand, then put them back into his deck holster.

"Not bad," He conceded, "Certainly better than I thought. Were these part of your private stash or was it part of the price that you sold me out for?"

"I didn't sell you out!" Akiza protested loudly.

"Really?" Sayer asked sarcastically, not being able to help himself. "So watching idly by as the person who saved you get sent to jail is normal? You're really learning a lot from these satellites."

Sirens sounded in the distance. Not Sector Security sirens, a distinct sirens representing the security team of the Zephyrs. Sayer paled further.

"Let's get out of the Satellite," Akiza said, changing the subject.

"And what?" Sayer asked. Akiza's vulnerable, always has been. Now that there's nobody around her, she's easy pickings. "You'll leave and never come back? You'll let me die the next time we meet? You'll forget about all the time we spent together?"

"I don't know," Akiza answered, her voice breaking. "Stop asking these questions! I hate you!"

He was her father-figure, her role model, her hero. He was all that and more because he was the only relationship of any kind she had had since the age of five. It took Yusei to help her accept that Sayer only helped her for her powers. But that doesn't changed the fact that he helped her, and she wouldn't be here without him.

She might not have lasted long enough to be anywhere.

"We have history, Aki," Sayer's smile grew wider as he saw the effects of his words. "Nobody can compete with that."

Strangely, Akiza calmed down as she remembered Yuki's words.

"Everyday, we make history," She replied, "And I have the power to shape history to my will. I liked the time I spent with you Sayer, and I'd love to stay friends, but this, whatever it was between us, is history."

History. Sayer thought as he mounted Akiza's Blue Rose Dragon for his escape. But his dear Aki forgets, history is doomed to repeat itself.

* * *

Rex Goodwin perused the newest reports in his hand regarding Yusei Fudo and his suspicious visit to the Tops residential area in Neo Domino, where another suspected Signer lives.

If he knows Yusei Fudo and he does, the boy knows next to nothing about Signers, certainly not enough to visit another person suspected of being a Signer. The cause of that visit is evident.

Then it clicked.

Rex had been suspicious of the reason Yuki used for her acquiescence to participating in the Fortune Cups. She offered Momentum as a decoy, then used Lazar to send a secret letter to the Tokyo Commissioner for Domino City requesting a meeting.

But Rex Goodwin was suspicious of her desire to meet the commissioner. Tokyo doesn't have much influence on local governments. Japan has been changing prime ministers as frequently as, well, as frequently as Japan changes prime ministers.* There isn't much she could want, or in fact receive.

When his team discovered Yusei's secret visit to the Tops, it all came together.

Of course! Any person who knows about the upcoming battle would try to gather the Signers and use their power, for better or for worse. That must be what she came here for, to identify and befriend the Signers for her own goals.

Two can play at that game, and he doesn't intend to lose.

* * *

I sighed contently. Sitting down at the dinner table filled with food, real food. Just food. No reports, no meetings, no magical monsters, unexplained disappearances or workers' comp. I could get used to this.

I barely nodded at Rex Goodwin sitting at the head of the table, I didn't have time for lunch so now, all I could focus on was the food in front of me.

"Yuki!" Jack stormed in. "This is where you're hiding!"

I've been avoiding him all day to avoid having to duel him. I didn't want to be locked into a duel I might lose, seeing as I can't justify losing without the mark showing up on my arm.

I ignored him.

Nothing was going to distract me from my first meal in a month, especially not a dueling has-been, no matter how hot. I also ignored physics and piled more food onto the plate than should be permitted by gravity. I can't necessarily eat that much, I just liked having the option.

I didn't notice Jack's attempts at physically getting my attention nor Mina placating and restraining the overlooked King of Games of Domino City. All my attention was focused on, well, really just mediocre food.

I chewed the miniature sandwich in disappointment. It wasn't _bad_. After Satellite food, this was heavenly. At the same time, my memories from another time distinctly reminded me that it was an average deli sandwich, the kind you grab when you only have an half-hour lunch break. I pushed the sandwich aside in favor of meat, at least there's no way to get that wrong.

"Yuki! You can't run forever, you _will_ duel me today!" Mina finally gave in to her charge, and Jack was released. He now stood over me, completely blocking the light and my view of the food.

"Hmm?" I said through mouthfuls of food, "hmm-hm, hhm-hmm-hm."

He slammed his hand on the table, spilling the apple juice I just poured.

"Hmm!" I protested in vain, and finally choked down everything in my mouth. Now I know what Crow felt like when I challenged him 21 times. "Come on, right now?"

"Duel me now and prove the last game wasn't just a fluke!" Jack pierced me with his icy glare, "Win and you can crown yourself the new King of Games!"

"I dunno," I said through mouthfuls of meat. I couldn't care less about card games at this moment, I was just pissed he was interrupting my dinner. "King sounds like a dog's name, doesn't it? I had a friend who had a dog named King, he was a German Sheppard mix, the dog not my friend obviously. He's cuter than you are, the dog I mean. You're cuter than most humans but it's hard to compete with a furry paws and a tail, so it's not your fault."

"Are you still drunk?" Mina asked suspiciously.

"No, why do you ask?" I happily stuffed a syrup-covered pancake into my mouth (available at my request). Okay, maybe I'm on a little bit of a sugar high.

"I'm sure your desire for a duel will be satiated in the Fortune Cups," Rex Goodwin calmed Jack down. I made a neutral noise and continued stuffing more food inside myself.

Jack sat down reluctantly at the table, grabbing himself a plate also.

"Who are you?" Rex Goodwin said suddenly.

"What do you mean?" I asked, nearly choking on the food in my mouth.

"I had obtained detailed records of Yuki Tono from the Satellite. The records are a little fuzzy, but she certainly never had a friend who could afford to keep a German Sheppard. Yet your DNA matches hers exactly. So I ask again, who are you?"

I paused for a full second at the question.

In retrospect, I probably had a lot of loopholes as far as 'being Yuki Tono' is concerned, but nobody really questioned me on it until now.

"Does it matter?" I said finally, "I am who I am, and my name is Yuki Tono. Isn't that all you need to know?"

"It is. For now." Rex Goodwin admitted. "We have much more at stake, the entire world is at risk if we can't defeat the Dark Signers."

So this issue is on pause, I get it.

"You understand the importance of this tournament in identifying the Signers and calling upon the full powers of the Crimson Dragon. I don't want anything to go wrong," Goodwin whispered with a malevolent smirk, "If you threaten my tournament, then everybody in your little gang comes to Neo Dominos with you, and it's bye-bye world domination"

It might not be up to him after this, not if my trip to the Satellite works out.

I was nodding up until the last fragment of that sentence.

"World- what?" I coughed, choking on my own saliva, drawing a look from Akiza.

"Surely you didn't hope to hide your plans for the Satellite," Goodwin said in a knowing tone, "it's obvious to anyone who cared to look."

"World-" I felt embarrassed even to say the word, to imply that I associate with people who honestly believes such comical villainous ideals. "No, just, no." I managed to sputter through fits of laughter.

"You think this is funny, Yuki," Goodwin asked disapprovingly. Of course he'd be pissed, I was laughing at his dream. LOL

"Sorry, sorry," I apologized while gasping for air, "it's just that this morning, I was still worried where I was going to get my toothpaste, now we're discussing seizing the entire world."

"So you claim to have no plans beyond the Satellite?" Goodwin sounded absolutely neutral. This guy had problems.

"Nothing concrete yet," I admitted, "I'm not saying that I won't, but I promise no world domination attempts." I couldn't resist a chuckle even as I said those words.

"I'll take your word for now," Goodwin acquiesced, though his tone suggested otherwise.

Ever since I met him today, he seems convinced that I wanted to take over the world. I wonder why.

My first meal in a month ended in an awkward silence that would have probably given me indigestion if I hadn't been so hungry.

"Come on, Yuki," Mina cut through the tension, "Let's get you to bed. It's getting late and the tournament's tomorrow."

"Let's," I nodded.

The _game_ on the other hand, had began a very long time ago.

* * *

- **A/N:**

*LOL, not sure if anybody's gonna get this joke, but I love it. Japan's had 7 prime ministers in the last 11 years. XD To put that into perspective, McDonalds claim that their average employee works there for 2.5 years. Borrowing Steve Job's analogy, Japan is a ship in the middle of the ocean with a giant hole in the middle, and they're trying to find somebody who is best at steering it.

Next chapter will be up by this weekend, because I've already written most of it, yay!

Up next, Fortune Cup. And it only took 150k words. LOL. Though like I said, the tournament is just starting, but the game has long began.


	36. Fortune Cup- The Other World

**Disclaimer:** I do not own YDO 5Ds,

 **A/N:** As promised, there's the new chapter XD

* * *

Yusei's duel runner stopped at the Fortune Cup arena with Leo and Luna sitting in front of him.

"Yusei!" Blister walked up to greet him.

He was followed by Tanner, the ex-Domino City duelist and old man Yanagi, both of whom were friends Yusei made during his stay in the Facilities.

"Hey guys," Yusei greeted, carrying Luna and Leo off his duel runner.

Tanner picked Luna up so she was sitting on his shoulders. Leo jumped up and down and demanded the same.

The group trailed towards the stadium, with Akiza joining them at the entrance. If all went according to plan, and Blister should make sure that it does, Leo would replace Luna in the first round.

* * *

I looked on at the scene from Goodwin's office in the tower (yes, it is actually a tower!) at the edge of the stadium, looming over the duel arena.

"It's odd," Rex Goodwin said quietly behind me, "that Yusei Fudo should have chosen to come."

"Why is that?" Jack asked annoyed that Goodwin might think it's odd for anyone to jump at a chance to duel him.

"I had tried to get Yusei's friends to convince him to join the tournament," Rex Goodwin replied tacitly, I could feel his gaze on my back. "None of the Sector Security could get them. And yet here he is."

"He means he tried to kidnap Yusei's friends and take them hostage to force Yusei into the Fortune Cups, but couldn't because of my team." I translated for Jack, "But yeah, I asked Yusei to come here."

"And why is that?" Rex Goodwin asked.

"I put money on it," I replied matter-of-factly.

"On his participation in the Fortune Cups?"

"On him winning." Turning around and seeing the dark look on Goodwin's face, I added, "I'm not sure if I can beat him, so it's easier to bet on him winning the game."

"You would lose on purpose for money?" Jack sounded offended. I don't think it occurred to him yet that I was betting on Yusei beating him also.

"It's a lot of money," I said defensively, "Like retire and buy an island money!"

And we need it. I do plan on buying an island.

Mina herded me down and I joined the other seven duelists in the waiting area

We waited for the MC to call on each participant and for our platforms to rise onto the stage. It looks much less impressive from this angle.

 _"Please welcome!_ " The MC spoke loudly over the speaker system, _"our contestants for the Fortune Cup!"_

 _"He knows what you're thinking, The Professor!"_

 _"He knows what you did last summer, Detective Kodak!"_

I had to give him credit.

 _"The Stone Wall Greiger."_

 _"The Master of Warriors, Yuki Tono!"_

I like it, it feels appropriate. Nonetheless, I hope the nickname doesn't stick, I've been contemplating changing my deck for some time now.

 _"The enigmatic Black Rose Akiza Izinski!"_

The crowd hushed at the appearance of the urban legend Black Rose, then grew louder than ever. Akiza looked at the crowd, her head held high.

 _"The adorable Luna!"_

Leo came up, waving and smiling.

 _"The Spectres of Duel Monsters, Shira!"_

A cloaked figure appeared onto the field.

 _"And last but not least, the Shooting Star of the Satellite, Yusei Fudo!"_

At the announcement that Yusei was from the Satellite, the crowd went wild in protestations. Greiger stepped up, taking the mike and spoke in Yusei's defense. I guess being judged for where he came from really struck a nerve with him.

After the stadium quieted down, the MC was able to proceed.

* * *

The dueling schedules were hardly a surprise, each suspected or confirmed Signers would face off against one of Goodwin's lackeys.

So it's me against the Professor. Luna (i.e. Leo) against Greiger. Yusei against the carnival knight, Sir Randsborg, and Akiza facing off against Commander Koda.

I couldn't help looking at Goodwin as I heard the listings, he waved discreetly with a smile but didn't say anything more.

Seriously? He's seriously asking me to face off against the guy who was defeated by Luna and Sunshine Unicorn? Sunshine. Freaking. Unicorn.

I could've beaten Luna's deck with the deck I had back in the original Yugioh series. For one thing, I never put Horn of Unicorn into my deck. Its effect of returning to the top of your deck when destroyed may waste a draw and does more harm than good and can be detrimental when you're in a pinch.

"You're up first," Yusei smiled and patted me on the shoulder as he walked off the stage.

I returned the smile if a little reluctantly, dueling the Professor would no doubt be the low point in my career.

"Let's give it up for Yuki Tono and Professor Frank!" The MC announced excitedly.

Oh god, that guy's name's actually Frank. Frank. As in 'they frankly put no thought into designing his character'.

I took the stage, facing Frank with a barely suppressed smile and feeling somehow apologetic on behalf of people from my dimension. He matched my smile with a slight bow.

"Why don't you go first, as a sign of my goodwill," Professor Frank began smoothly, "I look forward to nurturing our mutual understanding during the duel. I hope to see you flourish like the Satellite has under your care."

The crowd grew a little rowdy at the knowledge, I wondered briefly if Goodwin had asked him to do this or if it was only him.

"Alright," I shrugged, I didn't think it mattered when dueling him. "I summon, Legend of the Six Samurai, Shinai (lv3, 1500/1500) to the field in attack mode. I'll put two cards facedown and end my turn."

" _Yuki's starting off her first turn with a powerful monster in attack, let's see how The Professor will respond."_ The MC commented through the loudspeaker.

"I shall continue the duel then," Frank said. "I bring to the field, Symmetry Rorschach (lv3, 1200/1200)" in attack mode and place a single card face down. "

If that's all he has, he's going to be clobbered.

A large amorphous blot appeared on the field. I derided its attack and defense, but my eyes kept being drawn to it as though against my will.

"Now, Yuki, I want you to look at my monster, study it, tell me what you see." He slowly tried to lure me into his trap.

"Why?" I asked flatly, rolling my eyes.

"Through dueling we understand our opponents, but most importantly, we gain an understanding of ourselves. Like a pebble on the beach shaped by the repeated turnings of the tide, as are we constantly changed by the world around us, and thus must strive for constant introspection."

"Fine," I replied, seeing as he wasn't going to shut up until I complied. "Let's see, moth, moth, sacrum, batman, fat moth, skinny moth, Lazar, I mean clown."

There were some laughter from the crowd.

"You seem very guarded," Frank observed, unaffected by the commotion "I noticed you only say the most artificial response, never anything that strikes you on a deeper level. Why is that?"

"Because this is a duel," I answered impatiently, "These people came for the Fortune Cup, not for you to advertise your psych clinic. They want to see a duel, isn't that right?"

Roars from the crowd answered me, I waited expectantly for him to announce the end of his turn.

"But what about you?" He asked patiently.

"What?"

"You're worried about what everybody else wants, but what about you?" He asked again, "What do you want?"

"Me?" I repeated, I hadn't exactly been prepared for the question, nor is it one I've had time to think about for a while. You know, end of the world and all.

"You can see anything when you look at it," He said slowly, his voice growing quieter with each word, "Your friends, your family, maybe someone you miss? Or someplace far away that you thought you'd never see again? You can see it all again if you just concentrate hard enough, now isn't it worth it to at least give it a try?"

I felt like I had suddenly been stabbed in the back. All the air escaped from my lungs and I could only let out a quiet whimper. I had tried very hard to forget the other life, because it doesn't help me when I might die at any minute.

I've become so good that I've even stopped dreaming about it.

Now all the memories I had tried to keep suppressed for the last month came flooding back, drowning me so I could barely breathe.

"Isn't it?" He prompted.

"It is," I repeated. I knew he was trying to hypnotize me but I couldn't resist. Because he was right. It was well worth the risk if I could see everything again, even if it's only in my own head.

"That's right," He urged gently, "Look closer, open your mind, and let it take you where you want to go."

I stared Rorschach Symmetry, feeling a little stupid but also hopeful.

"You want this to end, don't you?" He continued slowly, "So you can be where you want to be? Where you belong?"

"I do," I murmured, I missed my world more than I dared to put into words.

"Then let me help you, take me to your world," His voice seemed to have come from very far away, "Show me what it's like."

And it hit me. As in it literally hit me. Symmetry Rorschach attacked. The monster changed shape, a face emerged from it and destroyed Legendary Six Samurai-Shinai. While I wasn't paying attention, Professor Frank had equipped his monster with the Axe of Fools, increasing its attack by 1000 to 2200, thereby dealing me 700 damage.

In a trance, I didn't activate the two trap cards I had on the field, Scrap-Iron Scarecrow (deflect one attack per turn) nor Dual Style- Six Samurai (return two cards to opponent's hand).

From the outside, Yuki Tono stood frozen on the spot. Her eyes now vacant, not responding to any of the boos or jeers from the crowd.

* * *

Even if I had known, I wouldn't have cared in the least. But I didn't know.

I looked at the familiar room that I hadn't seen since a lifetime ago, my mind a complete blank. Truth is, I hadn't been sure if I would ever see it again.

It was a pathetic one-bedroom apartment not much more comfortable than my place in the Satellite, albeit with a fully-stocked fridge.

Bugs littered the floor because I was supposed to have cleaned the place two days ago. The faucet is leaking again, my landlord said he'd get somebody to fix it but never did, I'll probably just take a wrench to it myself just like I did last time. It never lasts long though, and I keep on thinking one of those days I'd just break the entire plumbing system, and I'll have to pay for it because I broke it. I still had two used plates in the fridge that I was supposed to wash from when a friend came over the night before but I woke up late and drove to work in a rush.

I hated this place.

And if I could, I would have traded that entire world for this single apartment.

I dove face-first onto my bed, _my_ bed, with teddy bear sheets and matching pillows that my grandma got me because she still thinks I was thirteen, even the lumps fit my body perfectly.

Lying there, with my eyes tightly shut and my face buried in the sheets, I could almost pretend this is real. That nothing ever happened.

Maybe it was all a dream. Maybe if I wished hard enough, it would all stay this way forever. Even as the thought occurred to me, I felt the model of the Momentum around my neck, pressing uncomfortably into my chest.

If nothing disturbed me, I might have stayed there forever, but to my irritation, I felt an intrusion.

Right, I was here because 'Frank' had the guts to toss me here in order to _weaken_ me. God he has no idea.

"So this is where you're from? It's a little, simpler than I thought." The Professor waltzed into my apartment, picking up the photo on the table, "And these were the people you were hoping to see?"

The photo! It's been so long I'd forgotten about it. It had seemed hopeless enough that I had forced myself to forget about it.

It was from the last time we went camping, my parents and I. We all hated camping but we all agreed that we needed the fresh air. I had a strained smile and a spider on me that I discovered immediately after this picture was taken. The subsequent pictures were still on my dad's phone and he refused to delete them. My mom didn't even bother hiding her annoyance and made a face at the camera. My dad looked largely stoic except for the cat on his head. Rufus, their British shorthair, was the only one who actually enjoyed camping and stood proudly licking his front paw.

I meant to get a frame for it but I didn't get around to it yet, so the photo laid on my desk. It would have been the last photo they had of me. And I guess the last one I have of them.

"This is the people you miss?" Frank said carelessly, tossing the photo onto the ground.

I saw red.

"You forget," I smiled mirthlessly, "You're in my mind. This is _my_ world."

Because even I can tell this isn't my original reality. For one thing, I'm still 4'8 with green hair.

"I brought protection," Professor Frank replied, gesturing to Symmetry Rorschach behind him, "I tribute my Symmetry Rorschach to summon Ido the Supreme Magical Force (lv6, 2200/800). Now that you have nowhere to run, what would you like to do?"

A purple lizard with golden stripes appeared in my living room, crushing my armchair with its tail.

"You really don't get this do you?" I asked incredulously. "Have you been working with children for most of your career?"

His expression confirmed my suspicions.

"Because I don't need monsters in this world, this is _my_ world! I _AM_ the monster." I reached out and Ido the Supreme Magical Force shrunk as it flew towards me, until it stopped beneath my feet no larger than a bug. And I crushed it.

Professor Frank turned pale, realizing his error in underestimating the home field advantage of a mature adult mind.

"I _could_ let you go," I said slowly. Even Rex Goodwin is unlikely to locate me from just the glimpse of memories Frank had seen, let alone deduce that I'm from another world.

"But I don't want to."

I don't want share this innermost part of my soul with anybody, the only part that's fundamentally mine. Somebody forcing their way here, I felt contaminated, possibly more so than any physical attack could have done.

Professor Frank turned to run, but it was too late. It was too late the second he stepped into my mind. I looked at him, wanted him gone, and he was. The remaining part of his mind, the part that didn't venture into mine, would likely recover with time, but that part would know nothing about what he saw here today.

The duel stadium erupted into an uproar as Professor Frank collapsed in the second turn of the game, abruptly cutting short a duel that didn't promise to be very interesting in the first place. I was vaguely aware of what's happening outside, but it all felt so distant.

It always had.

Everybody in the Satellite and now Domino City knew I didn't belong there, I stand out like the Ace of Spades in a deck of children's trading cards. It's hard not to stand out when you move to a new city, it's impossible when you move to a new dimension and timeline.

I still have people to laugh with, but I don't have anyone I can cry on.

I still have people who rely on me, but nobody I can lean against.

I still have people who trust me, I presume, but there's nobody I can trust.

Neither the Paragons of Good nor the Embodiments of Evil can know what I have planned for their gods. For now, that's my sole source of amusement.

I'm living half a life.

It's sort of appropriate, isn't it? since I've already died once.

If I still could, here, of all places, would have been the place for me to break down, bawl my eyes out, but I can't. I can only be weak if there's somebody to be strong for me, and I don't have that anymore.

I went outside, into either an illusion of the mind or an actual world that existed because I thought it did, I frankly didn't know which and I wasn't sure if I cared. The one thing good about my apartment was the view, so I thought I'd enjoy it one last time while I still had the chance, drawing courage from a world in which I was absolutely safe. It was about seven in the morning here, I had just missed the sunrise. But this is my world, and time wasn't going to be an obstacle.

Holding my hand out for effect, I watched as the sun quickly dip below the horizon again before rising up. It was, because I willed it so. Because by definition, this is my world.

I wonder if I'm its God.

I wonder if it's the kind of power the Netherworld monster would have over this world if we lost.

I wonder if it's the kind of power the Crimson Dragon has now...

* * *

Yusei Tono came to as her opponent passed out unconscious on the field, leaving the duel half finished.

" _Um, what an unexpected finish to the first game of the tournament!"_ I told you he was good.

"Congrats, Yuki," Akiza smiled as she stepped up to begin her own duel.

"Thanks," I smiled back, "And remember what we talked about tying guys up with vines?"

"Don't do it except to Yusei." Akiza nodded firmly in all seriousness.

"Or at least not on national television." I laughed.


	37. Fortune Cup- The Black Witch

**Disclaimer:** I do not own YGO 5Ds

 **A/N:** The Fortune Cup arc would _not_ have a focus on duels, because why would it, right? Just because it's a tournament based around people playing a children's card game.

MC's words are in _italics_ , switches between the duel arena and audience is separated by X (most of the time).

* * *

Lazar stepped into the surveillance room of the Momentum Research Facilities, escorted by Sector Security.

"We've doubled the security here as you requested, Vice Director Lazar," The officer said respectfully.

Lazar nodded as authoritatively as he could managed. Instinct had been screaming at him something would go wrong during the tournament, and it would be here. The satellite girl literally said she wanted the Momentum, and he didn't think her visit here was just to pass the time.

Then again, he can't think what could possibly happen to the most powerful weapon in the world.

The Momentum isn't just a gun or a car lying around that people could steal, it's the energy source of the entire Domino City. Trying to steal it would be like cutting a wire while there's high-voltage electric current passing through it, or more precisely, it would be like trying to steal a _live_ nuclear reactor.

The idea is ridiculous and the act should be suicide.

"I don't think I've seen you before," He noted at one of his entourage.

"My name is Chase sir," The orange-haired teenager smiled, "I came from Tokyo."

"Criminal record?" Lazar noted the golden tattoo on his face with some distaste.

"Turbo dueling while under the influence," Crow recited the charge Blister made up for him, "but that's all in the past now."

The extra security he requested for the Fortune Cup tournament, Lazar realized, they're really taking anybody who has a deck of cards now. He dismissed the guard from his mind.

Even if the satellites had managed to steal something else worthwhile from Neo Domino, he had made sure that they can't move it to the Satellite.

Lazar knew there were smuggled goods from Domino City to the Satellite, but that is usually only done with the implicit consent of the patrol officers after the right amount of money had greased the right palms. Now he gave explicit orders to forbid anything suspicious from leaving Neo Domino, even if Tono somehow got hold of something valuable, there is no way she can get it out of the city.

* * *

"Congratulations," Rex Goodwin handed me a glass of champagne as I entered the top-floor penthouse overlooking the duel arena. Leo (as Luna), Yusei and Jack were already inside, an attempt of Goodwin's to connect with the Signers I suspect.

"Thanks, you'd make the ultimate butler." I sat down on the sofa directly in front of the tv, propping my feet on the coffee table, "Could you get me a bowl of popcorn too? Butter, not caramel."

I'm the decoy for this tournament, the magician's assistant who distracts the audience as the trick is being done. So I might as well play the part.

Yusei nodded with a smile, Jack grunted a greeting.

Goodwin looked at me darkly. I shrugged, laughing.

"What? You already service Jack!" My mind wandered very briefly to Goodwin servicing Jack.

"So _you're_ Yuki," Leo (dressed as Luna, hereafter referred to simply as Leo) piped up, "I heard you're one of the best duelists in the Satellite, can you beat Yusei?"

"We couldn't exactly finish our last duel," I spoke quickly before Yusei had a chance. Goodwin still thinks I dueled Yusei while in the Satellite.

"Let's play now," Leo offered hopefully, his eyes bright, looking no different than any other ten-year-old in my dimension (aside from the green hair I mean).

"Some other time," I dismissed right as somebody burst into the front door, almost bumping into Rex Goodwin as she did so.

"Yuki Tono?" The teenager exclaimed excitedly. She had dark green hair, glasses that hid her eyes, and wore a blue and white striped shirt.

"Carly Carmine," I greeted, "nice to meet you."

Jack looked at me suspiciously, clearly wondering how I recognized Carly. Good, that's the kind of attention I want.

"Oh my god, are you actually Yuki Tono?" Carly barely heard me, "I thought you were an urban legend."

"Um…" I scratched my nose, not sure what to say, "I'm pretty sure I'm real."

"How did she get here Jack?" Rex Goodwin interjected impatiently.

"I gave her the exclusive for this tournament," Jack, not thinking there's anything to hide, explained simply.

"Oh yeah, Jack was really nice about it too," Carly replied, "I owe him big time! This is gonna be so good for my career, I can't believe I'm actually in here, with the best duelists in the world! And Director Goodwin! Can I have your autograph?"

Goodwin stared at the notepad in front of him as though trying to will it out of existence. Sadly, he had not received either marks of Darkness or Light and had no such magical powers. The notepad stared back at him unyieldingly.

"Of course," He resigned, signing his name in a flourish, "To Carly, right?"

"Oh you don't have to make it out to anybody," Carly was smiling ear to ear as she flipped the page and motioned for him to sign again. I have no doubt the signature is going to be put on sale as soon as she gets out of here. I would say that she'd put it on EBay, except that there's no EBay in this world: war and famine isn't great for internet access or shipment delivery.

"So you do exist!" Carly turned back to me, satisfied with the number of signatures she got from Rex Goodwin. "Can I take a picture, can I get an exclusive? Did you really take over the Satellite? I heard you dueled Sector Security for ten days straight to get them out of the Satellite!" Carly said excitedly, she didn't notice Rex Goodwin's face growing darker with every word. I did and couldn't help grinning.

"I'm afraid that's all just rumors. The Satellite has always been under Domino control, however limited control they bother with. I run a small business on the east side, that's all." I said.

"That's it?" Carly's face fell, "That's not a scoop! I was hoping you're have some really cool stories I could write about!"

"I'm afraid I don't have much of a story, if you're like I can have somebody put together a press release for you." I answered, nothing interesting that I would put into print at least.

"Press release?" Carly made a face, "That's like the opposite of what I want to write about. Could you guys tell me anything about Akiza, is she actually the Black Rose Witch? Is the Black Rose Witch real too?"

"The duel's about to start," Yusei noted, his eyes never having left the giant screen.

"Oh yeah," Leo nodded energetically, "Do you think she's gonna win?"

"I'm sure she will," Yusei answered softly, a smile playing at his lips.

Akiza's duel just started as we turned our attention back to the screen.

* * *

 **Turn 1: Akiza**

 _Please give it up for, the dueling Detective Koda!_

 _And the enigmatic witch Black Rose!_

The camera swept over the audience, catching snippets of conversation that broke out at the confirmed appearance of the Black Rose Witch. Most ranged from 'why did Goodwin allow _her_ into the tournament' to 'burn the witch'.

And yet nobody even considered the practical implications of a human with superpowers! No wonder this world is so messed up despite its technological prowess.

"So we meet again, Akiza," Koda spoke ominously, "I've been waiting for this day since we dueled last time."

"I'm sorry, have we met?" Akiza asked sarcastically with feigned innocence, "I don't keep track of all the people I've beaten, it's too long a list."

"You may not remember the people you hurt Akiza, but we remember you. Today, on behalf of all of them, I will deal out justice like you deserve!"

"So you _are_ here to duel. Then stop blabbering." Akiza barely waited for the duel to start, "I'll start. I activate Black Garden."

 _That's the Black Witch's signature card, this field spell would cut in half the attack of all monsters on the field, and summon one Rose Token (lv2, 800/800) onto the opponent's side of the field every time somebody summons a monster._

Next, I summon, **Twilight Rose Knight** (lv3, tuner 1000/1000) in attack mode. Her special ability allows me to special summon **Lonefire Blossom** (lv2, 500/800). I tribute Lonefire Blossom to summon **Evil Thorn** (lv1, 100/300) from my deck. Using Evil Thorn's special ability, I tribute it to summon two more **Evil Thorns** from my deck. Finally, I'll turn my level 3 Twilight Knight with my two level 1 Evil Thorns to synchro summon **Ally of Justice Catastor** (lv5 2200/1200). Your move. "

The entire field was enshrouded in real vines, blocking the views of the cameras and the audience. A giant diamond-studded insect on Akiza's field was just visible through the foliage.

The crowd booed loudly, now seeing the powers of The Black Rose for the first time and fearing, possibly justifiably so, for their lives.

X

"Ally of Justice?" I turned to Yusei and questioned.

"Akiza was open to some changes and I thought it would help her deck's lack of high attack monsters. We had a couple one hand." Yusei looked defiantly at Rex Goodwin. Right, Ally of Justice cards were Sector Security standard issue.

"So that's the Black Witch!" Carly raced to the window to a couple of pictures, "I can't believe she's real too! And I'll get to meet her! I can't wait for my year-end bonus!"

X

"You hide your true self from the world at every turn, Akiza, but I know who you really are. You're a monster, a freak! I saw it, and now the world will see it too!" Koda promised ominously.

"A rose by any other name," Akiza brushed off his remarks. "Not too long ago, those words would have hurt me Koda, like you're no doubt trying to do. But I know who I am now, I have made peace with myself if not with the world around me. So there's nothing you can say or do that'll delay your demise today."

She cast a look over the stadium, silencing thousands of people with a single disparaging glance. The only power they had had over her were their words, now that's lost its power. She knew it, and now they know it too.

 _I hope he knows what he's doing, it's usually best to stay on the good side of a witch._

I frowned at the MC's choice of words, Goodwin smiled a little apologetically.

"She's not a witch," Koda corrected, "She's a telekinetic, that's somebody who can move things with their mind."

"What has education in Domino become that he thinks he has to explain the word 'telekinetic'?" I wondered out loud.

"Well I don't know what it meant!" Leo replied immediately.

Jack laughed, Yusei looked thoughtful.

"How old are you again Yuki, thirteen?" Goodwin asked meaningfully. I ignored him.

 **Turn 2: Detective Koda**

"My turn." Koda drew.

"I activate my trap Just Desserts," Akiza flipped over her face-down card, "For every monster you have on the field, you receive 500 damage."

 _Koda has five Rose Tokens on the field, that means 2500 damage in one move. Can you say_ burn _? Just so you know folks, while the Spell Black Rose Garden is on the field, these Rose Tokens do not take any damage, and they are not destroyed in battle, which means the Commander has no way to get rid of them. Let's see what he does._

"I have studied every single one of your duels Akiza, and I know your every move. I knew you would play Black Garden and summon Rose Tokens onto my field. So now I tribute three Rose Token to summon, **Mad Profiler** (lv6, 2600/2400)" Koda said.

 _Woah, another level six monster! Good for him. But Koda better keep this up if he wants to get out of this duel alive, rumor has it the Black Rose can deal real damage in duels!_

"It's not a rumor, it's true. I experienced it firsthand." Koda said seriously. "You don't remember the people you hurt Akiza, but I could never forget that day. I was an upper year Obelisk Blue ready to go pro, then I was challenged by a Slifer Red. You destroyed me and my deck, and I swore on that day I would get my revenge."

"If you swore revenge on everybody who defeats you, you must have a really busy schedule." Akiza replied sarcastically. Now where did she learn that from?

X

I looked at Yusei, I don't remember Akiza being like this.

"It's your doing," Yusei explained. Was that reluctance I heard in his voice? "Akiza said she wanted to be tougher, like you."

"Oh god," I imagined myself with superpowers and feared for the world, "I hope not."

X

"You'll never hurt anyone again Akiza, I won't let you! I activate my Mad Profiler's special ability, when he's summoned to the field, I can discard one card from my hand to destroy a card of the same type on the field. So I will discard three cards, to banish everything on your field! "

The crowd erupted in cheers as the vines disappeared, releasing all the monsters on the field from their clutches. Considering it was really just a mediocre move, I assume it was done more out of fear for the Black Rose Witch than in support of Koda.

"Don't celebrate too soon," Akiza flipped over her last trap card, "When my Black Garden is destroyed, your Mad Profiler's attack is restored, from 1300 to 2600. My trap card Rose Curse would hit your life points for every single one of the attack points you gained."

Commander Koda's life points dropped from 1500 to a measly 200 as a storm of rose petals surrounded him, Koda braced himself, shielding his face with his arm. Koda was surprised to find himself emerging unharmed, he lowered his arm at the end of the spell, finding the petals had dug a very neat circle around him, more than a foot deep into the granite stadium floors.

"I've been working on controlling my powers," Akiza licked her canines, smiling menacingly, "What do you think?"

"Now, Mad Profiler, attack directly!" Koda commanded, trying not to think about what those petals could have done to him.

Akiza's life points dropped by 2600 to 1400.

 _What an incredible move! Detective Koda destroyed almost half of Black Rose Witch's life points in one move! What would she do next! This announcer for one hopes she won't try to kill us all._

"I know everything about your past Akiza, everything from your parents sending you away to your recent involvement with a satellite. I can predict your every move! And that will help me when I play this, Mind Monster! This card lets me guess one card in your deck, and if I guess correctly, you take half of its attack points as damage. I'm guessing you have Black Rose Dragon in your deck."

Akiza gritted her teeth at the pain as Black Rose Dragon (lv7, 2400/1800) is revealed from her deck, and she took 1200 damage, dropping her life points to 200.

"How did you ever guess?" She asked sarcastically.

"Say what you want, but this duel is about over! Before I end my turn, I will protect my Mad Profiler with Destruction Insurance and Lightlow Protection."

 _Destruction Insurance takes half of the attack points of the equipped monster from your opponent's life points when your monster is destroyed. Lightlow Protection prevents anything from changing your monster's attack and destroys it. Detective Koda's done his fieldwork!_ The MC explained.

"Just because you know everything about a tank doesn't mean you won't be crushed when it comes your way." Akiza tilted her head slightly, visibly annoyed at her own analogy and regretting comparing herself to a tank.

 **Turn 3: Akiza**

"So I see you're not even _trying_ to play the victim, you've fully embraced being the Black Rose. Good, that just makes putting you away easier." Koda replied.

"I am Akiza Izinski, I _am_ the Black Rose. You try to deny one to justify the other, but both are me." Akiza replied seriously.

"Then you'll have each other's company when I put you away for a very long time." Koda dismissed. "You only have 200 life points left, next turn, you're going away for good."

 _Commander Koda's right about one thing, this duel's hanging by a hair! Akiza's field is completely empty. If she doesn't finish the duel this turn, next turn, the Commander will finish her._

"I summon," Akiza drew and smiled down at her hand, " **Black Rose Witch** (lv4, tuner, 1700/1200) to the field, in attack mode!"

"How appropriate," Koda commented, "A half-decent monster blown way out of proportion, but when you look at it, it's not that strong after all. Sounds familiar?"

"Not by herself, no." Akiza actually smiled. She looked up at the tower. I don't know how I know, but I know she was looking at Yusei, who smiled back. "But even the Black Witch had friends. Her special ability lets me draw another card when she's normal summoned to the field, and I drew **Rose Fairy** (lv3, 600/1200). Her special ability lets me special summon her to the field, so come on out!"

"I think you know what comes next. I tune my level 4 Black Rose Witch with my level 3 Rose Fairy. By your powers united, I synchro summon, **Black Rose Dragon** (lv7, 2400/1800). Behold the powers of the Black Witch!" Akiza laughed, a little maniacally I guess, which is probably concerning. I snuck a glance at Yusei, nah, I think we're probably good.

"Next, I equip my dragon with Thorn of Malice, this spell increases my dragon's attack by 600 points, but any monster that battles with it is not destroyed. So Black Rose Dragon, destroy Mad Profiler!"

Black Rose Dragon's next attack brought Koda's life points to zero, its tail bumped casually against Koda's arm, slicing the titanium-enforced duel disk cleanly in two. Koda paled.

X

"Oooh! I _have_ to interview her, this is gonna be tomorrow's headline, I just know it!" Carly cut through the silence in the room as she jumped up, grabbing her camera and notepad. "I wonder how much people would pay for Black Witch's signature?"

* * *

 **A/N:**

Okay, I lied, I didn't finish my rant on Akiza, not the Black Rose part anyways.

I was surprised how much Akiza sucked after Black Rose is gone, both in terms of dueling and her actual power.

In the anime, after her duel with Yusei and turning back to 'normal', the next time Akiza dueled was with Team Unicorn like an entire season later, and she did absolutely nothing that duel. Nothing. Then she couldn't even fight kidnappers when she used to be able to summon dragons!

And there's no exact reason why the Black Rose part of Akiza had to be destroyed. It's angry certainly, but anger is a normal human emotion and it's not evil. Not more than Jack at least. (Yes, I'm still baffled by people's generally cavalier attitude towards Jack's attempted murder of Rally)

The 5Ds world judges people by their dueling abilities, so what does that mean when, in order for Akiza becomes likeable, accepted and 'good', she must also be weak? I suspected the resultant Akiza Izinski was designed to better fit the Japanese expectations of a girl her age.

I mean, Japan _is_ ranked 111th on the gender equality ranking (2016) and it really shows up everywhere.

This is the end of my Black Rose rant, I don't think there'll be anymore.

 **A/N 2:** I don't know what to do with my Charizard-Yuki extra. I don't have a plot (which obviously has to be different when they're all duel monsters) but the idea is just so adorable. I may end up just posting clips at the end of the chapters as I think of them.


	38. Fortune Cup- The Spirit Realm

**Disclaimer:** I do not own YGO 5Ds

* * *

"This is stupid!" Trudge complained, kicking an empty can towards the ocean, only to have it hit the protective fencing around the shoreline and bounce back towards him, as though taunting him. "This is _so_ stupid." He repeated, kicking the can over the fence. Immediately, alarms sounded, detecting an unauthorized item having crossed Neo Domino borders.

"It'll all be over soon," Dean consoled, typing in his own password to turn off the alarm. "This is just for the tournament."

"We sealed the Satellite so tight not even trash could get through," Trudge grumbled, "literally, we even stopped sending trash to the Sateliite. Why do we still have to patrol Neo Domino to make sure nothing gets out?"

"Hey, at least we're not patrolling Satellite," Dean shrugged dismissively, "I hear things are really getting tense over there. You heard of Sayer?"

"Who?" Trudge leaned over curiously.

"He also goes by Divine, leader of the Arcadia organization, you know, the one who they say could summon real monsters? Anyways, apparently he went frqzy and is loose in the Satellite right now, and people there are fearing for their lives. Even legal shipments in and out of the city have been stalled."

"Whatever," Trudge reluctantly admitted patrolling Neo Domino was better than patrolling the Satellite, "I'd still rather be hunting down that Satellite punk though. I wish we could were somewhere that showed the duel, so I could watch him get crushed like he deserved."

Dean sighed, Trudge had been obsessed over the 'Satellite punk' Yusei Fudo who is currently competing in the Fortune Cup tournament. Seeing the giant billboard up ahead for Yusei Fudo's duel runner, he turned his colleague in a different direction.

"Here," He offered his headphones. Given Trudge has been ranting about Satellite this whole time, Dean decided to not bring up the fact and the mp3 were made in Satellite too (the only reason a lowly flatfoot like him could afford the cutting-edge technology), "This should make you feel better. I just bought the Misty Lola's newest album, give it a try."

"Thanks man," Trudge accepted, he was never into this new technology crazy but after all, it is _Misty Lola._ He missed the billboard just like Dean had hoped.

* * *

"I'm sorry Director, the Black Rose still wouldn't come up," Lazar apologized profusely, but there isn't very much he could do against magical monsters.

"Why not?" Goodwin demanded, a little annoyed.

"She said," Lazar stuttered, "She said she doesn't like you, sir."

Rex Goodwin looked down at the arena. The Black Rose had already been confirmed as a Signer, along with Yusei and Jack, all of whom have shown their marks at least once in recorded duels. So who's the last Signer?

"Don't worry about Izinski, just keep an eye on her for the time being." Goodwin commanded and dismissed Lazar as he stepped towqrs the wind overlooking the duel arena.

"I'll go check on her," Yusei stood up from his seat, nodding at me briefly and entirely ignoring Jack.

"I'll go with you!" Leo bounced up, "My duel's coming up! Don't forget to root for me!" He said to the rest of the room, then grabbed Yusei's hand and dragged him out the door.

Looking at the space Leo just vacated, I leaned over towards the armrest so I was reclined against the side of the sofa, with a bowl of popcorn in one hand and a glass of champagne in the other. All I'm missing is Netflix and the newest season of Sherlock. I almost purred in pleasure, relaxing and watching TV. If only I could change the channel to something interesting…

"You're not at all concerned about the upcoming duels I see," Rex Goodwin commented, standing behind me.

"I have faith in Yusei," I tried to shrug, then realized it's very difficult while in my position, so gave up, "He'll do fine."

"And what about Luna, the other suspected Signer?" Goodwin persisted.

"If she's a Signer, there's nothing to be concerned about. If she's not a Signer, why should I be concerned?" I answered, "Do you have some chips too?"

* * *

"Go Leo!" Luna cheered from the stands at seeing her brother on the stadium, then covered her own mouth, "I mean, go Luna!"

Their friend and classmate, Dexter, laughed mercilessly. "I gotta take pictures, this is gonna be so much fun!"

"I got us some snacks," Blister squeezed in between Luna and te escaped convict Tanner, sitting together because they were both Yusei's friends. It's a wonder the girl isn't kidnapped yet.

"Cool, you got those chocolate covered marshmallows I like!" Dexter reached over and was given a bag. Blister opened the rest of the high-sugar, high-caffeine snacks, distributing them freely without an obvious focus on Luna.

"I thought you were gonna die in that hole of yours," Tanner commented, grabbing a pretzel, the only thing not covered in chocolate, "What brings you to the games?"

"My most recent employer is very convincing," Blister explained lightly, remembering back to the number on the check and Chaos' gun against his skull.

Tanner sent a look Blister's way, seeing that he wasn't going to say any more, stopped his line of questioning.

* * *

"This thing's awesome, Chase!" Wade commented, handing the tablet back to his new colleague reluctantly, "I can't believe we could actually watch the tournament on this thing!"

"Yeah, as long as there's internet in the building," Crow grinned, "Keep it, I got loads." He's pretending to be a rich brat who was forced by his parents to get a job, so far, he was loving it.

"Cool," Wade carefully held onto the tablet. "I'll keep this in the breakroom, so we can all catch a glance at the game once in a while."

"Don't worry about it, I brought my big screen to the break room, just gotta hook it up." Crow replied.

"Awesome!" Wade's eyes shone, "I really want to see that Yusei kid duel, he's got be good if he made it here from the Satellite!"

"You know, you're not so bad, we should have a duel sometime." Crow said sincerely.

"Cool, we could do it after work!" Wade offered.

"I can't, I'll be sick tomorrow." Crow deflected.

"What?" Wade asked.

"I'll be sick tomorrow afternoon, hopefully at 3, definitely no later than 4pm." Crow replied with a large smile.

"You mean you'll be lining up to go into the tournament as soon as you're getting off. Then 4pm should be plenty of time, that's when the last duel is supposed to start." Wade remarked drily.

"Well, there's the traffic, and the line. Plus, I heard they're giving out autographs before the duel begins!" Crow laughed.

"Fine, I won't rat you out. Wait, it looks like there's gonna be another duel!" Wade said excitedly, sharing the tablet as the two walked around the building, patrolling aimlessly.

* * *

 _What an incredible come from behind victory, Yusei lapped Hunter Pace, twice in one duel. If he keeps this up, we'll have another 'Master of Faster' on our hands._ The MC's voice could be heard both on the television and from the loudspeakers on the arena.

"That was a pathetic duel", Jack glared holes into the screen. "The Yusei I know could have beaten him five turns ago."

This is gonna be great for my ad campaign, I grinned, smiling into my giant bowl of chips, I had requested that Yusei put more emphasis on his duel runner for this game. The pre-orders are already underway, I wonder if we can still jack up the price on Yusei's duel runner replicas.

I was happily counting how much money I could make off of Yusei's duel runner and wondering if I could convince him to sell the real thing to me when Goodwin blocked my view to the screen.

"What is it?" I looked up.

"Well, I'm afraid we have one last duel for you today." Goodwin explained, "Since your duel was cut short, and we discovered there had been a case of impersonation in one of the duelists, Luna, I thought it might be appropriate if we staged on final duel between the two of you."

"You want me to duel a ten-year-old." I deadpanned. Jack shot me a look that clearly said 'now-you-know-how-I-feel', I smiled back apologetically.

"She is one of those I suspect as a Signer, I'm sure you are as anxious as I am to reveal the identity of all five Signers, are you not?"

"Sure, why not. Let's go beat up a kid." I rolled my eyes, getting up and making my way out the door.

Akiza had dueled too many times in Domino City, rumors of the magical glow on her arm had started years ago. Yusei and Jack had both had their marks at least partially activated, so as far as Rex Goodwin is concerned, the choice is between me and Luna.

When a Signer is about to lose, their passion about the game would bring out the Mark of the Crimson Dragon on their arms, so no matter who wins or loses, a duel between Luna and I should indicate who the Signer is.

I wondered about bringing the game to a draw, but that might seem too conspicuous.

"You are eager?" Rex Goodwin noted.

"Can't wait to get this over with." I picked and chose carefully amongst my cards as I made my way to the arena. I need a deck that wouldn't give Luna a chance to activate her Signer mark, a one turn, or preferably, one move kill.

* * *

"Hi Yuki," Luna smiled up at me. "It's nice to meet you. I'm not very good at this yet, so let's just have fun, okay?"

"Whatever you say…" I managed to smile, wondering if I looked creepy. I was never good with kids, never even liked them. That sounds horrible, doesn't it? But I'll admit it, never liked those miniature humans who run around everywhere not knowing what they're doing or why they're doing it. I'll accept their necessity, but I don't have to like it. "Why don't you start us off, Luna?"

"Sure," Luna answered happily, "I summon **Kuribon** (lv1, 300/200), in attack mode, and I'll end my turn."

She summoned Kuribon, in attack mode, and was ending her turn. I looked up the tower in search for Goodwin, I wonder if he looked as exasperated as I felt right now.

"Um, then I guess I'll summon **Six Samurai Enshi** (lv4, 1700/1000) and set two more cards facedown to end my turn." I replied hesitantly. I don't need Luna to get excited for the duel, I need her to remain calm so her mark doesn't show up.

"Kuribon said she thanks you for not attacking her." Luna explained. "You should be careful Yuki. Yusei had helped me build my deck, and now that Kuribon is on the field she will help me play, so I'll be really good."

"Of course Kuribon will help you play," I sighed. That talking to your imaginary friends things is cute now, ten years later, she'll be evaluated for schizophrenia.

"Now I summon **Shining Angel (** lv4, 1400/800) to the field, in attack mode! Shining Angel, attack Yuki's monster!" Luna commanded, I don't know what her magical fluffy friend said to her but she's looking more confident than I expected, and she looks like she actually had a plan.

"Shining Angel helps me when he leaves the field. He lets me bring out another monster from my deck, Fairy Archer (lv3, 1400/600), I need you now. Now when she's on the field, I activate Inferno Reckless Summon. Both of us pick one monster on our field and bring out all of them from our deck. I have two more Fairy Archers to help me, and Kuribon tells me you only have one Six Samurai Enshi."

"You really don't have to tell other people what Kuribon says," I said weakly. Though in fairness, that's a very powerful special ability.

"I activate my Fairy Archer's special ability, as long as she doesn't attack, I can deal you 400 points of damage for every light monster on my field. That's 1600 damage." Luna cheered.

 _It's a good thing only one Fairy Archer can use its ability per turn, else this duel's over before it even started!_ The MC explained.

"And I'll protect my monsters with Messenger of Peace, so that no monster with more than 1500 attack can attack. And I'll keep her in a safe place by activating a field spell, Ancient Forest."

X

Holograms projected illusions of a forest around me, but what I saw was distinctly more real. I could see shadows of trees in the distance, I could hear the birds sing, I could smell the pine and birch and- What? I shook my head. Confused to find myself transported into another world for the second [f*ing] time today. Is this just a basic life skill everybody has now?

"Greetings young ones," Ancient Fairy Dragon spoke, her voice echoing as though she was omnipotent and omnipresent in this world, which she might as well be for all I know.

Luna had repeatedly described the Ancient Fairy Dragon as beautiful, breathtaking, and exquisite. She has a very different idea of beauty than me.

As an Insect type, the Ancient Fairy Dragon had the head of a locust, the wings of a moth (or butterfly, whatever. It's detached from the insect, how can you possibly tell?), the misshaped body of a lizard (let's say dragon) but none of the limbs, with human arms and hands protruding out of what is roughly the thorax of her body. If anything, she looks like a locust that decided to rip body parts from other creatures and just stick them onto herself to see what would happen.

All of these haphazard body parts were in a seemingly random combination of primary colors.

It looks like a disfigured children's drawing that terrifies any reasonable adult. Of course, she's not even of the same species, so my perceptions of beauty is hardly relevant.

Still, it doesn't help that the monster is probably capable of vanquishing me with a thought.

"Are you Ancient Fairy Dragon?" Luna asked tentatively, reaching out to touch the dragon around her wings.

"I am." The beast replied, "And I welcome you, my children, to my world."

I looked at the monster guardedly. I had always had my reservations about the Crimson Dragon, and by proxy, its surrogates. The fact that Ancient Fairy Dragon looked like it could eat humans for dessert certainly doesn't help.

"Why are we here?" I asked, cautious not to anger the beast.

"Our time for war draws near, I had hoped I would meet my Destined Signer prior to the Final Battle." Ancient Fairy Dragon explained, its voice had an ethereal quality that Luna didn't seem to mind, but gave me goosebumps all over.

"Who, me?" Luna wondered out loud, "But I don't know anything about, about a war. What can _I_ do?"

I waited patiently while the Ancient Fairy Dragon explained every facet of the upcoming fight between the 'Light' and the 'Darkness', all the while studying Luna. I had wanted to defeat Luna in one turn, so her mark doesn't have a chance to activate, but this might be better. Every second Luna stays here, she's drained further. I could just wait till she collapses.

Luna is beginning to look weak, Ancient Fairy Dragon looks like it noticed too, so before it releases us, I spoke.

"How can I know that I can trust you?"

"I have fought with the Crimson Dragon five thousand years ago," Ancient Fairy Dragon began.

I tried to look interested while waiting for Luna to be worn out. It doesn't matter what Ancient Fairy Dragon said, or what it looked like (though I admit, if it were cute and cuddly, I might have been convinced to change my mind). There's no way to confirm anything it had said or claimed to have done, and I was too old to be convinced by mere words. After all, I've been to kindergarten, and the first thing they teach you is don't believe everything a stranger tells you. Just because the Ruler of the Netherworld was evil didn't mean its enemies were Good, nor did I know what the Crimson Dragon's definition of 'Good' was.

The truth is, there had been a suspicion I never dared to say out loud in this world. Not even to myself, for fear of being overheard by the possibly-but-hopefully-not-omnipresent/omniscient supernatural creatures.

Ever since I spoke to the Crimson Dragon, ever since I heard of its mission for me, the idea came to me, and it had haunted me ever since.

When I woke up in the Satellite, I vaguely remembered the crash, feeling dizzy and disoriented, then waking up in the sewers. That seems like the logical sequence of things so I assumed that it was.

But the more I think about it, the less sure I am whether an initial dizziness didn't cause the crash. If the Crimson Dragon had needed to take a particular mortal out of the real world and into this one, what better way to do so than murder? It would cut all ties for the aforementioned mortal and ensure a certain gratitude for saving their live.

There's no way I can think of to verify this information, I can't even hint at it because we do need the Crimson Dragon to prevent this world from being destroyed. The Crimson Dragon is portrayed as being good throughout the series, but I really don't want to push it when the monster could clearly destroy the world.

X

"Sorry guys, I'm really tired. I don't think I could do this anymore." Luna said weakly, she shook slightly, obviously struggling just to stay awake.

"Let's get on with the duel then." I replied, purposefully ignoring Luna's request that she wants to return to the real world. "I'll try to finish this as quickly as I can."

"I activate my trap, Six Samurai-Dual Wield and return two of your Fairy Archers to your hand. Next, I summon **Legendary Six Samurai Kageki** (lv3, tuner, 200/2000), when he's summoned, I can bring out **Kagemusha of the Six Samurai** (lv2, 400/1800) on to the field also, in attack mode. I special summon **Grandmaster of the Six Samurai** (lv5, 2100/800) to the field.

Luna opened her mouth as though to protest, so I quickly continued.

"I tune my level 2 Kagemusha of the Six Samurai with my level 3 Legendary Six Samurai Kageki to synchro summon **Accel Synchron** (lv5, tuner, 500/2100). Now my Six Samurai Enshi banishes the two monsters in my graveyard to return your last Fairy Archer to your hand. I tune my level 5 Accel Synchron with my level 5 Grandmaster of the Six Samurai to synchro summon **Ally of Justice, Decisive Armor** (lv10, 3300/3300)."

 _What an astonishing turn of events. It does look like this duel has been turned around in just one turn!_

I heard the MC say loudly. My vision wavered and returned to normal, the spirit realm dissipating. Luna was half conscious and could barely keep her eyes open. I had suspected synchro summoning in the spirit realm would be the last straw for her, looks like I was right.

"Hey, Luna, are you okay?" I asked.

Luna made a tiny mewing sound that her microphone barely picked up. She obviously struggled to not fall into unconsciousness, which would claim her soon anyways.

"I'll finish this quick then," I paused, waiting for her to tire out, "I activate the effects of my Ally of Justice Decisive Armor, I discard all cards in my hand to the graveyard to send all the light-attribute monsters in your hand to the graveyard," Luna's eyes were completely closed now, and she leaned forward, falling into unconsciousness. I spoke quickly before she actually collapsed. "Your life points gets hit with the total of their attack points."

 _That's, faster than I thought._ The MC stuttered.

Luna fell, laying on the ground unconscious. In part thanks to the force of the blast (I'm still not sure how it could be emitted from a hologram).

"Luna!" Leo towards the field and was blocked off for being an audience member. Yusei walked up instead, picking up Luna in his arms.

"Was this really necessary?" He admonished, though lightly.

"More than you can imagine," I replied. If my suspicions are correct, I need Goodwin to believe that I'm a Signer, so I could survive after this tournament.

* * *

"Fire!" Smoke had filled the entire Momentum Research Facilities within minutes.

Sector agent Wade heard the alarm and ran with Chase upstairs, scanning each floor in search for the source of the flames as scientists in white lab coats filed out of the building.

"Code downgraded, I repeat, code downgraded." The PA system announced thirty minutes later.

"What happened?" Wade asked the control room through their intercom.

"We found a bunch of plastic on fire at the bottom of the garbage chutes, that's where the smoke's coming from. We think it's a prank, but check everywhere just to be sure, okay?"

"Yes sir!" Wade replied.

"Hey, do you have this?" Crow asked, pointing sheepishly toward his watch.

"Right, you want to line up for tomorrow as soon as today's tournament's over." Wade looked at the clock, it was 4:15 already. They got off at 4. "Yeah, go ahead, I'll take care of it."

"Thanks buddy," Crow raced off, running towards the breakroom towards the 'microwave' he had brought for public use. He didn't have much time. At 4:23, Sector Security would be subject to a failed hacking attempt, courtesy of Nervin (and Yusei, who wrote the virus ahead of time), but it would be enough to temporarily disable the security feeds for a little over 10 minutes, during which he would have to get to the Momentum. Upper levels, holding sensitive information, has much less monitoring, digital or otherwise. So he has to get to the top floors before the surveillance system is restored.

* * *

"That was a great duel, Yuki." Mina complimented, leading me through a maze of hallways out of the stadium. I rolled my eyes behind her, if that was a good duel, then I'm Yusei Fudo.

Seing Greiger coming from the other way, Mina stepped to the right, passing him. I followed, only to have him block my way. I stepped to my left again, so did he.

"What do you want, Greiger?"

"You shall be my opponent tomorrow, I wanted to greet you properly." He taunted, grabbing me by the shoulders and pulling me off the ground until we were eye-level, then shoving me into the wall. "Before I rip you from limb to limb."

"Goodwin put you up to this?" I asked, wincing from the pain. "Didn't exactly put much work into this, did he? I mean he put in two years of planning when it comes to Yusei and Jack, and he'd been monitoring Luna since she was three, and this is all I get? A pre-game intimidation ritual?"

"How about this then?" Greiger paused, "Who do you think informed Sayer of your association with Izinski? Who do you think convinced him it was a good idea to go into the Satellite and try to destroy your entire gang?"

"Goodwin?" I asked, not quite interested, kicking my legs slightly wondering if he'd let me down, "Not you, I know _that_. I mean, you may have done it on his orders, but let's be honest, mind games aren't your thing."

"Let's try a different strategy then, since you think mind games aren't my thing." Greiger sneered. He let go of his right hand on my shoulder. And with his left hand still holding me up on the wall, his right hand slowly closed over my throat.

"No, what are you doing? Stop!" Mina grabbed and clawed at the much larger man, calling for Security which took much longer to arrive than normal. "What's wrong with you?"

Greiger let the young woman drop from his hands, watching her hack for breath on the ground as a genuine, if slightly surprising, sense of pleasure welled up inside him. He seems to have under-estimated his own jealousy, seeing her hometown being rebuilt while his was lost because he was too busy looking for a way out to defend it. While she was willing to do whatever it takes, and have it turn out in her favor, his sacrifices only led to the destruction of everything he ever loved. And her surperior-than-thou attitude certainly didn't help the matter.

"I'll see you on the field." He mocked, "Then I'll show you what real pain is."

"Yuki, what are you going to do for tomorrow?" Mina asked as she and two sector security agents escorted me back to my room.

"What do you mean?" I asked.

"Your duel tomorrow with Greiger will be a turbo duel, but you don't even have a duel runner yet!"

"Don't worry, I have a plan."

* * *

 **A/N:** I don't like writing a Luna duel. As far as I can remember, she only dueled twice in the entire anime, and only once out of her own freewill, against Z-One or something. Writing Luna was also weird because my brain is still in espionage/economic trade-offs/politics mode, then I have to write a 10-year-old.

I'm assuming Signers don't have their marks activated until they're passionate about their duel, etc, else Luna would have had her mark activated every time she lost to Leo.

Like I said, duels wouldn't be a big part of this tournament. Also I don't like having to follow the anime script, it's so restrictive.

So far, I have laid out all major plots for the rest of the story, though some foreshadowing may be more obvious than others :P


	39. Fortune Cup- The End Game

**Disclaimer:** I do not own YGO 5Ds

* * *

"Yuki-sama!" Mina rapped on my door loudly at 8am that morning, "Please wake up! You're already late for your duel with Greiger!"

"I'm not going to the duel," I replied through the door.

"What?" I could hear the surprise in her voice.

"I told you, I'm not going."

"But you said you had a plan!" She protested.

"I do. This is the plan. I'm not going."

I died in a car accident not that long ago. I can still recall, surprisingly vividly, the steering wheel crushing my sternum, breaking it and forcing the shards of my bones into my still-beating heart. Okay, I may have imagined that part, I was probably dead by then but that's not to say it didn't constantly haunt my dreams for the past month. I won't be getting behind a wheel if I could avoid it.

"You can't do this! This is completely against protocol." Mina pounded on the door.

"Then let me do something in line with protocol." I picked up the phone and dialed the number to the stadium. "Hi, this is Yuki Tono speaking, I'm the duelist scheduled for the turbo duel this morning, would you mind putting me on speaker?"

"I understand, but I assure you this is crucial to the tournament today." Mina heard Yuki's muffled voice through the door, then the voice grew much clearer, she realized it was coming from one of the guard's portable radios. He was listening to the tournament while on duty, she would have to remember to dock his pay later. "This is Yuki Tono speaking, just thought I'd let you know I'm forfeiting the duel with Greiger this morning, that's all. Have a good day."

"Argh! Open the door! You're worse than Jack!" Mina complained, moving aside to let security break down the door and hoping to salvage what she could so she doesn't get fired over this.

I pulled myself out of bed and got dressed quickly, what I would face next is much more challenging than any duel.

Of course I didn't skip the duel just because I didn't like duel runners (though I'd be lying if I said it didn't play a role). The fact is, I _need_ Yusei to duel Jack in the final match in order to guarantee the summoning of the Crimson Dragon, which means I can't defeat Yusei.

If I lose my duel with him, the mark still not showing up on my arm would be too suspicious. So even if I defeat Greiger, I would have to skip my duel with Yusei. This is at least less suspicious.

"Yuki!" Mina stumbled in after Sector Security, slightly disheveled, finding me waiting at the desk. "Finally! Why didn't you just open the door?"

"Sorry about that Mina," I grinned in apology, I did need to stay on Mina's good side, "I just really didn't want to turbo duel, bad memories. The second game of the semi-finals have already started," I motioned to Akiza and Yusei taking their places on the duel arena, "Let's go. I expect Director Goodwin is waiting for us."

* * *

"Hey, what's the big hold up?" Trudge trudged along Domino shorelines with his partner Dean, spotting a pile of shipment containers near the dock, large enough to block part of the road.

"Let me go check," Dean approached the workers, extracting his badge. He came back moments later, "It's all aboveboard. It's Domino shipments to the Satellite, but they say Sayer's running wild on the port over there so they're not letting anything through."

"I thought all shipments were cancelled?" Trudge asked.

"This is humanitarian aid, apparently," Dean didn't sound convinced by his own words, nor did he sound like he cared, "Whatever. It was Ms. Simington's orders, so who are we to question it?"

"Heh, heh. Well, if it's Ms Simington, I'm sure that's fine then." Trudge stuttered a little, hoping his friend wouldn't notice the faint blush creeping on his cheeks.

"Doesn't she outrank us by like five levels so it doesn't matter what you think?" Dean rolled his eyes, he hadn't seen a crush that blatantly obvious since grade school.

"Whatever." Trudge grumbled, changing the subject. "Since when does Domino provide aid to the Satellite?"

"Who knows? The less questions you ask on this job, the better." Dean dismissed, continuing with his partner on their beat.

* * *

"Miss Tono, I believe I am owed an explanation." Rex Goodwin said acidly as I entered the tower an hour later. Only Jack and Lazar was inside this time. I guess he doesn't think Luna is a Signer anymore, so there's no reason for her to be here.

"I don't like to turbo duel." I replied simply.

"Is that all." Goodwin said the question as though it were a statement instead.

"Also I bet money on Yusei winning the tournament, so there's no point duelling Greiger." I laughed, glad to hear it not sounding forced at all. I've mentioned it earlier, I'm sure he had already looked into the bets I placed.

"You mean you gave up on the tournament for money?" Jack interrupted incredulously, "You gave up the chance to show your power to the world to win a bit of cash?"

"It's a lot of cash," I shrugged it off, "And also I really don't like card games on motorcycles, it's really not a concept we should promote to kids. I never even text while driving! If anything, that's what you need to promote."

"Interesting," Goodwin commented, his tone suggested anything but. "I wonder if that's why your Signer mark never showed up, there hasn't yet been a duel you're passionate about."

"Maybe she's not a Signer at all?" Lazar suggested with a malicious glint in his eyes. If I weren't a Signer, there would be no reason for Rex Goodwin to protect me, then I'll be dead meat while in Domino City.

"Only a Signer can defeat a Dark Signer," Rex Goodwin shook his head, referring to my duel with Kalin, "That is written into Fate itself."

Ah yes, Fate. The thing that binds everything creature in this world except me.

"Jack!" Carly bounded into the room, camera still around her neck, and trying to latch herself to Jack's. Jack reached out a hand to steady her, and to hold her and a distance.

"I took so many great pictures! This is gonna make the headlines for sure! Oh I'm sorry Jack, I mean your duel'll make the headlines of course, this, this will be on the second page or something." Carly was obviously more preoccupied with her career prospects than her love interest at the moment, "I'm getting that promotion and I'm getting that raise! Let's see Angela beat this!"

Akiza glided gracefully into the room, her duel with Yusei must have ended while I was still getting here. She glanced the room, nodded at me brusquely. Obviously deciding that nobody in the room was worth her time, she leaned against the wall facing the television, waiting for Yusei, trying to hide her pleasure under a stoic pretense.

Yusei followed, rushing in. Obvious relief washed over his face when he spotted me.

"Yuki! You alright?" He approached me quickly with a faint smile, "I was worried when I heard that you didn't show up for your duel. Did something happen?" He raised his hand hesitantly to his neck, "Are you-?'

"Oh yeah," I touched my own neck and winced. I don't think Greiger did any internal damage, but the bruises are definitely beginning to show. "Don't worry about it. Sorry I missed your duel, what happened?"

"It was a great duel," Yusei replied with a conspicuous blush.

"I'm a Signer," Akiza added flatly, raising her arm to show me her mark, now permanently displayed on her forearm. "Hardly a surprise, I've seen it quite a few times before."

"Oh yeah, it really was an awesome duel," Carly bounced over, showing me pictures she took on her digital camera (newly assigned to her thanks to her exclusive access to the Fortune Cups).

I flipped over the pictures Carly took and immediately understood their awkward dynamic. One picture, for example, captured Akiza as she activated Mark of the Rose, both her monster Botanical Girl and the duelist blew a kiss at the opposing field at the same time. Unlike his monster, Junk Warrior, which remained impassive, Yusei's ears were distinctly pink. Another showed Lonefire Blossom on Akiza's side of the field, I could see its vines creeping across the field and inside the Yusei's pant leg. Much further than it should. He should wear tight leather pants next time to prevent something like this. Also Akiza needs to learn the difference between PDA and harassment.

"Maybe be a little careful about what you publish," I chuckled. 'Passionate', right, I can see 'passion' oozing off the picture.

"As long as you're alright, I'm going to get ready for my next duel." Yusei nodded his goodbyes. I was a little touched when I realized he must have come up just to ask Goodwin about my whereabouts. It's hard not to appreciate his trust and sacrifice when he offers it so liberally.

"I don't think you'll need it, but good luck anyways." I waved him off with a sincere smile, my first since coming to Domino City.

"Ms. Izinski, perhaps you would enjoy the duel more if you would watch it from the penthouse, it gives a better view." Goodwin offered as Akiza was about to follow Yusei's lead. At his words, guards moved to corner Akiza. Yusei paused, turning back to watch the scene, looking more amused than anything else.

"Don't you ever learn?" Akiza ignored the duel requests sent to her duel disk, instead felt through her deck and selected a card. "Botanical Girl (lv3, 1300/1400), don't kill anything." A human-looking figure appeared, a trunk grew out from where its spine should have been, blossoming into a giant flower than sent petals to destroy all 'attacking' duel disks. The Black Rose descended the tower without further incident, security guards crowded her from a distance, but moved out of the way as she got nearer. Akiza dismissed her duel monster before leaving the tower, chose a seat near the twins. For the rest of the world, she was the harmless school girl again, Luna pulled on her hair playfully, jealous of the natural curls.

"I hate to say I told you so," I commented wryly, "but I told you so. You have to start spending some money on real defense equipment, maybe start with actual guns instead of relying on finger pointing."

Obvious, nobody present got my joke, I was beginning to get used to my humor being underappreciated.

"One can hardly prepare one's security force to battle the Black Rose on a regular basis," Rex Goodwin reasoned, leaning back and preparing to enjoy the upcoming game.

I looked at him questioningly, he was certainly more relaxed today.

"As you mentioned, a non-Signer cannot possibly defeat a Signer," Goodwin explained, "I have no concerns for this duel."

Of course, I soon realized the truth. Now that Yusei and Akiza's marks have appeared, Goodwin thinks he had confirmed the identity of all Signers.

"So the winners and losers were decided before the game even began?" Jack asked, disapproval leaking into his voice, "That's not what duel monsters is all about!"

"You know the Crimson Dragon selects only the best duelists as its envoy," Rex Goodwin explained without blinking an eye. "Naturally, these Destined duelists would win any battle to come their way."

Jack appeared appeased by the logic while I just rolled my eyes. Sure, that'll explain away supernatural help.

I turned to watch the game. Now that the ending was spoiled, it's far less entertaining. Greiger had already summoned his Summoner Reactor, Spell Reactor and Trap Reactor cards onto the field. A combo that should seal off most decks and ensure him victory. But no matter how much he struggles in this tangled web we call Fate, he could never escape its clutches. As a mere mortal, it was impossible for him to defeat a Signer no matter how much work he put into his deck or duel runner.

"You said you'd rebuild his village after he defeats Yusei in a duel?" As another mere mortal, I felt a little uncomfortable at the hand Greiger had been dealt. Even if his village hadn't been blown up, he was never going to earn them the help they so desperately needed.

"Ah," Rex Goodwin immediately grasped the unvoiced accusations. "Greiger is a mere pawn in the looming battle that will decide all of our fates. You of all people should understand, Yuki, sacrifices must be made in times of war, he's just the unfortunate casualty."

"As an unfortunate casualty less than four weeks ago, I can hardly empathize with the other side." I recalled my first meeting with Rex Goodwin, when he essentially referred to the entire Satellite as 'necessary sacrifice'.

"Your presence, and Yusei Fudo guarantees I cannot do the same to the Satellite, is that not sufficient to ease your mind? I find it difficult to believe you would reject my proposal forinjustice done to somebody else." Goodwin replied sarcastically. The more he saw of this girl, the more she reminded him of himself. Not his younger self that tried to build Daedalus Bridge, but rather the man he saw in the mirror every day. That hardly helped her case in his eyes.

I considered his words but didn't argue.

"In any case, it's you I'm curious about. You're the most likely fourth Signer, but you never answered my question, why did you come to Domino City? You're not really going to profit by your presence here, and my threats to harm your enterprise is hardly worth risking your life"

"Wait, what's all this about risking her life?" Jack asked suspiciously, he was entirely ignored.

"I came to Domino City because I needed to meet you one more time," I began.

This was my trump card, the one thing that should quell his suspicions until the end of the tournament, which is just this afternoon. It should enough time for Momentum to be transported into the Satellite.

"It wasn't hard to figure out you had plans to identify the Signers, what's with Yusei and Jack. What I want to know is why!" I banged my hand on the table for emphasis (oww), hoping I looked fierce and passionate. I've been working on my acting skills. "With what's coming up next and the role your brother plays, I can't afford to not come!"

As any of Crow's ward will tell you, the best way to throw suspicions off yourself is to act as the accuser and victim. Of course, they use it to get another cookie while I'm using it to get the most powerful weapon the world has ever seen, but the idea is the same.

To be fair, Goodwin's actions would have been beyond suspicious if I only knew what he thinks I know.

"What is she talking about?" Jack interjected again, the look on his face clearly demanded an answer this time.

"Seventeen years ago, Zero Reverse released a great Evil onto this world. This Wicked God amassed its supporters in the form of Dark Signers. The only one capable of defeating these Dark Signers are Signers, all of whom bears the mark of the Crimson Dragon." Rex Goodwin chose his words carefully, motioning to the red mark on Jack's arm.

"So that's why you got me out of the Satellite? And you were the one who set everything up so Yusei and I would duel with passion to bring out our marks?" Jack positively exploded. He can be very smart when the problem is card game related.

"The bigger problem is how our Good Director plays into this," I ignored Jack's outburst, my gaze never leaving Rex Goodwin "How did he know about this war at all, especially given his brother is the leader of the Dark Signers."

"His brother?" Jack sat up straight, alarmed.

"I've been looking into this for the last seventeen years." Rex Goodwin replied.

"That doesn't answer my question."

"My brother had been a Signer once," Rex Goodwin carefully intertwined truth with lies, "His powers were stripped before he fell to the Darkness, but before that, he begged me to gather the Signers and save this world from destruction."

"How do we know you're not lying?" Jack demanded.

Goodwin's eyes settled on me, expecting me to answer the question.

"If he were really evil, he would have killed Yusei a long time ago. Even if the Crimson Dragon finds another Signer, it's unlikely it would find as good a duelist."

Jack hmphed but didn't protest further. I'm beginning to think he knew subconsciously that Yusei was the better duelist.

"Though Jack's question still stands. Just because you're not a pawn to the Wicked God doesn't mean you're on my side, how do I know you don't just want to collect the power of the Signers for yourself?" I must not be easily persuaded, the most skeptical I act, the less skeptical he would be.

"I believe my dedication to Domino City had more than proved my position." Goodwin countered, "You may be a little young to remember how Domino City used to be, but I took a town not much better than Satellite, and turned it into the richest city on the east coast."

Jack looked contemplative, absorbed in thought. "I do remember that," He said with an odd tinge of jealousy in his voice, "Domino City became Neo Domino City when I was a kid, and then became the place where every Satellite wanted to go."

"Yet you let Satellite wither in pain."

"The Netherworld God is sealed inside the Satellite and in the people of the Satellite, I had no choice but to isolate the area." Goodwin sounded a lot more passionate than I did, I must admit, he was the better actor by far. "Look at the death rates in the Satellite before and after I took over, and you'll see that I have nothing to apologize for!"

I did look into that, and technically, he's not wrong. Goodwin kept the satellites on the brinks of survival, with just enough to make sure they're still hanging on. After all, his brother needs the tributes in the form of human souls.

"Still, not exactly the conventional choice for somebody claiming to be trying to save the world."

"The road not taken," Rex Goodwin replied, slightly defensive.

"Though for passing had worn them about the same*." I quipped.

Rex's expression cooled, then suddenly broke into a smile, "And you call yourself Yuki Tono."

"What are you two talking about?" Jack demanded angrily. I honestly didn't think he's hold off the questions for this long.

"Rex tried to pass off his decision to screw the Satellite as the unpopular but necessary choice." I replied acidly. "When he's just one in a long line of governments that neglected a large segment of its population."

" _Yuki Tono_ cannot read." Rex Goodwin replied in kind.

"She can't?" Jack questioned, obviously distracted from his original question "I never noticed. How did she learn all this stuff then?"

Rex Goodwin messaged his temples. Though it's not a surprise that he noticed. In retrospect, I probably had a lot of slip-up while in the Satellite, but nobody called me out for them.

"Your protégé, not mine." I laughed, carefully evading the subject

 _There you have it, ladies and gentlemen! Another upset victory for the Black Horse of the Satellite, Yusei Fudo. Don't go anywhere, after the break, he'll be facing our champion in the duel of the century!_

"And Yusei," Jack's eyes narrowed, his mind reflexing back to Yusei when he's confused, "Yusei knew about this Signer business all along!"

Even with pointy hair, I could tell his hair was beginning to stand on end.

"I told him a while ago, yes," I admitted. I could hear his breathing become heavy and his eyes turn red. His Signer mark glowed with his change in mood.

"So I was the only one played for a fool!" Jack stormed out, slamming the door behind him. Lazar chased after him though none of us were too concerned, he wasn't going to miss his duel with Yusei, not after this.

* * *

Yusei started his duel runner. He had imagined this duel a thousand times since Jack left, he never dreamed it would end up like this. He thought this battle would be about revenge, passion, justice, or at the very least, his feud with Jack. This was his chance to show Jack the potential of the Satellite and convince Jack to return to the City they both love.

Then Yuki told him the exact amount of money she had wagered on his victory, the number made his head spin. The Fate of the Satellite was riding on his duel, no magic involved.

X

Jack revved up the engine, determined to prove himself to the world and to his old friend. He was the King now, not just that scared kid who ran from the Satellite two years ago and Yusei would see that today!

X

Akiza scanned the arena casually, she had rejected Yuki's request to defeat Yusei in an arranged duel and face Jack (the request came because Akiza's returns were better on the betting markets…), but in exchange agreed to be the muscle and get everybody out of the arena when necessary.

X

Luna curled up in Blister's arms, bleary eyed but still not wanting to miss the duel. The unhealthy amount of sugar and caffeine the man fed her yesterday was beginning to catch up, she was… yawn. Being rocked gently definitely isn't helping.

X

Since Akiza never did any damage, the stadium was still full. The entire audience sat at the edge of their seats, waiting for the ultimate showdown between the best of Neo Domino City and Satellite respectively.

Rex Goodwin leaned forward in anticipation of the Crimson Dragon.

I clutched my arm, digging my flat nails into flesh, in anticipation of what the Crimson Dragon would bring.

X

"I can only contain Sayer for so long before people actually start dying," Galen complained to Felice. "Two more hours, tops."

"You can injure him now, as long as he's active enough that the Sector doesn't get suspicious." The white-haired girl replied, "Might as well, we'll need to take him down as soon as the duel's over."

X

Crow breathed in quietly from his position in a bomb shelter/panic room on the top floor of the Momentum Research Facility. This is it. Everything had revolved around him for the past couple of days, hundreds of people, tens of thousands of dollars, all for the sake of his mission. Failure was not an option.

* * *

 **A/N:** A belated merry Christmas and happy holidays to all XD

Never again will I follow the plot of the anime, it's just so restrictive! (Which also happens to be what Yuki thinks about their proposed constitution which is what I want to write about at this point!)

Sorry I haven't updated in a while, I've been replaying Phoenix Wright Ace Attorney :P. If I had updated every week like I planned, this chapter would have been about presents... Sigh

*Needless to say, the road not taken is by Robert Frost, so's ' passing had worn them about the same' (roughly). Basically Frost's point was the two choices were not that different, Yuki's point being Goodwin would have done the same thing in the end, magical influences or not. But the original 'Yuki Tono' wasn't supposed to have gone to school at all, which is why Goodwin laughed.

Anyways, please let me know what you think. The story is at a turning point and I have a bit of leeway in terms of what happens next, so I'd love to hear suggestions, what you think about what happened and what you think should happen next etc.


	40. Fortune Cup- The Finale Part I

**Disclaimer:** I do not own YGO 5D's

 **A/N:** As far as I understand, EnerD Reactor = Momentum, or at least is a modified version of the Momentum, so I'll be using them interchangeably.

* * *

"You looked concerned." Rex Goodwin studied the Yuki Tono, the young woman stood in front of the giant hole Greiger created in the glass walls, bracing herself against the wind. As though confident he wouldn't push her through it and to her death.

"Do I?" She turned with a cryptic smile, "I guess I am."

"Because of the upcoming duel?" He pressed.

"Because of what would come of it."

Goodwin followed her eyes to the stadium again, to the end of a duel that would usher in the beginning of a new era.

* * *

"I don't need your concern, and I certainly don't need your condescension!" Jack seethed, bickering while going 300 miles per hour (...). "I have risen above the Satellite and conquered all of Neo Domino City! You will not take me down! Not now, not ever!"

"I don't resent you for what you did Jack, but you do owe me this duel." Yusei replied firmly, "And here, we will settle everything once and for all."

"Don't you dare patronize me, Yusei! I owe you nothing! You're just one of the lowlifes who didn't have the guts or brains to escape the drudgery of the Satellite and that's all you'll ever be!"

"Don't you see, Jack?" Yusei shook his head (against serious wind resistance) "The Satellite isn't something we need to escape anymore! It's something we can be proud of, as long as we all work towards that dream!"

"Kalin's old dream?!" Jack snickered, "Didn't his arrest two years ago shatter that already? If you're still dreaming, prepare to be rudely woken up, by my **Dark Tinker (lv3, 1000/1300)**! Next, I activate the Powerful Rebirth trap card, to bring back my **Twin Sword Marauder** **(lv4, 1600/1000)**. When Powerful Rebirth brings a monster back from my graveyard, its level increases by 1, so I can tune my level 3 Dark Tinker with my level 5 Twin Sword Marauder to synchro summon, **Red Dragon Archfiend (lv8, 3000/2500)!** Red Dragon Archfiend, destroy Junk Warrior!"

* * *

Back on the stadium, people are beginning to talk about something other than card games on motorcycles.

Because of the clash of the two monsters on the field, dark clouds began to coalesce in the afternoon sky. Those gifted with magical powers could feel the energy stored in the sky. Nervin could also feel the energy stored in the sky despite not having magical powers, thanks to Dr. Zigzix's Amulet of Power- EnerD Detector (patent pending)

"Hmm?" Luna moaned even in her sleep. She had reluctantly fallen asleep during the duel thanks to all the sugar and caffeine Blister fed her yesterday. But the gathering energy was causing her mark to burn, a faint but unmistakable red mark was beginning to take shape on her arm.

"What's that? I don't think the forecast called for scary purple clouds?*" Leo exclaimed, wide-eyed.

"It's about time you learn, kid," Blister ruffled his hair, "The weather forecast is almost never right."

Since Akiza never tried to attack the entire audience, the stadium was still packed. Now the more safety-conscious members of the audience were beginning to edge towards the exit.

Blister picked Luna in his arms and Tanner grabbed Leo, with Dexter and old man Yanagi following closely behind, the six of them made their way to the edge of the stadium, joining a crowd that was already there. It was the closest place to the exit while still being able to see the duel.

"I wish we were closer to the action!" Leo lamented.

"Safety first." Tanner consoled him half-heartedly, Tanner would have stayed in the front row if he didn't have kids with him.

Blister merely shook his head. 'Mission first'. And his mission was to start evacuations as soon as the clouds began to gather.

* * *

"My turn!" Yusei drew, "I activate Descending Lost Star, to bring back my **Junk Warrior** in defense mode, with his level reduced by 1 and his defense reduced to 0. Next, I'll bring out **Hyper Synchron (lv4, 1600/800)**! I tune my level 4 Hyper Synchron with my level 4 Junk Warrior to Synchro Summon **, Stardust Dragon (lv8, 3300/2000)**."

"In that case, I activate Tuner's capture, to special summon your **Hyper Sychron** back to my side of the field."

"Stardust Dragon, destroy Red Dragon Archfiend!"

Thanks to Hyper Synchron's effect, Stardust Dragon's attack is increased by 800.

"You don't honestly think you can defeat my dragon with that little trick, do you? I activate Tuner's Mind! To send Red Dragon Archfiend back into my deck to special summon **Twin Sword Marauder** and **Dark Tinker** to the field!"

"Stardust, destroy Twin Sword Marauder!"

"Thanks to my trap card, your dragon can only target Dark Tinker."

"When Stardust attacks, my trap Synchro Blast can still hit you for 500 damage!"

"I doubt you'd have another chance like that!" Jack replied. "I tune the level 4 Hyper Synchron with my level 4 Twin Sword Marauder to bring back to the field, **Red Dragon Archfiend (lv8, 3800/2500).** Brace yourself Yusei, this is the end of the line for you!"

Red Dragon Archfiend opened its mouth and shot out a beam of blinding energy, Stardust Dragon matched its attack. Given Hyper Synchron's special ability, neither synchro monsters can be destroyed in battle.

* * *

Clouds thickened and descended onto the ground, swallowing both duelists on the field. At 2pm in the afternoon, stadium lighting became the only source of light in the arena. A dragon roared. It was not captured on recordings of any of the hundreds of video cameras presents, but every human _felt_ the sound.

Akiza had passed out as soon as the Crimson Dragon appeared. Luna had passed out in Blister's arms, but it was hard to tell even from security footage, since she was sleeping most of the time.

"Time to split!" While everybody was still in shock over the giant dragon-shaped monster hovering over the stadium, Blister held Luna in his arm and raced outside, carefully hiding her glowing arm under his jacket. 'As soon as the Dragon appears, take Luna out of the Stadium and go as far as possible', Chaos had requested. Blister had assumed it referred to a new duel monster from either duelists, but Chaos assured him he would recognize the monster when the time comes.

Though he never expected... This. Whatever this is. He didn't get paid enough for this!

"Hey, wait up!" Tanner herded Leo, Dexter and Yanagi outside also, chasing after Blister, who had already floored the gas on his own duel runner, showing no sign of slowing down. Acting, for all intents and purposes, like a kidnapper.

"He took Luna!" Leo accused.

"We'll go find him." Tanner put Leo on his own duel runner and chased after Blister towards the Satellite.

They weren't the only ones, reasonable people who correctly prioritizing their lives over a children's card game played by teenagers on motorcycles rushed out of the stadium in droves, all the guards could do was try and prevent a stampede.

* * *

Goodwin's penthouse was only slightly less chaotic.

"Director! We have a situation!" A voice screamed from Goodwin's PA system. "The EnerD Reactor, we don't know what's happening!"

I swung my head around towards the screens where Lazar's head had popped up.

"It's filling up too fast! We have gathered enough energy to power the city for a hundred years, but, but, all of our systems are in overdrive, some are beginning to malfunction!" Lazar looked petrified.

"Shut it down!" Rex Goodwin replied.

"What, but-" Lazar protested.

"If you don't want to repeat what happened the last time when the EnerD Reactor got out of control, you'll shut the Momentum down this instant!" Goodwin commanded.

The the last time EnerD went out of control wasn't that long ago, when Greiger's village was erased, leaving only a flat, lifeless strip of land.

"Last-" Blood drained from Lazar's face so that he was paler than his make-up. "Yes sir! Shutting down Momentum!"

"What's happening?" I grab hold of Goodwin's arm. "What did you do!"

Goodwin looked at the young woman with some amusement, there was genuine fear in her eyes, stripping her of the serious expression that usually made her look so much older than she was (or at least claimed to be). "Nothing to concern yourself about, a mere hiccup in the machine."

"A hiccup in the same machine that caused Zero Reverse!" My hold tightened.

Goodwin coughed uncomfortably.

" _This_ was your plan? I mean, this _was_ your plan! To build a rivalry between Yusei and Jack so their duel would bring about the Crimson Dragon?" I paused. "Just like their last duel!"

"Indeed," Rex Goodwin admitted, though neglecting the requirement of having all five Signers present at once. "So I assure you, everything is under control."

As soon as his words fell, the entire stadium went dark. The Momentum having just been shut off.

"Does that look like 'under control' to you!" I pointed to the ominous gathering clouds and the flashes of red light emitting from it. The only way it could be more horrifying is if the clouds were also mushroom-shaped. Artificial lighting had lost their power source, and the sunlight was blocked so completely by the clouds that looked black instead of purple. Trapped in complete darkness, the light from the Crimson Dragon was the only thing I could see.

"The power of the Crimson Dragon does have its risks," Rex Goodwin admitted in the darkness.

The backup power generators fizzled with an ear-splitting noise, but failed to come on. I could feel Goodwin's muscles tense under my arm from annoyance and anger.

"Under control you said?" I provoked him further.

"Wait here, I'll take care of this!" He freed his wrist from my grasp and walked out of the room, judging from the slamming of the door.

Good. I don't think he'll start the prophecy right this instant. I was trapped here, Akiza was unconscious in the stands, Yusei and Jack were in the middle of a duel. As far as he was concerned, all four Signers were under control, he had time.

And now Blister has time.

Luna had to be in the stadium for the Crimson Dragon to show itself, but now that it has, Blister is taking her away. Hopefully far away enough that Goodwin wouldn't be able to include her in his prophecy.

Yes, _his_ prophecy.

It's an odd quirk of the story that I noticed way-back-when, the prophecy was not initiated by the Crimson Dragon itself, but rather by Rex Goodwin, presumably through the power of the head of the Dragon Mark. In other words, if I could distract Goodwin, I could delay the initiation of the prophecy, giving Blister time to take Luna away.

Only finding three Signers in his prophecy, Goodwin would be unable to confirm my real identity, giving me its protection for a little longer.

* * *

Crow didn't get television in the panic room where he was hiding, but the blaring alarms were enough to let him know that his time had come. Taking out the costume he brought, he quickly put on a lab coat and face mask, then exited as inconspicuously as possible, taking the 'microwave' with him.

Not that anybody was paying any attention to him.

Alarms screamed disaster while red lights flashed violently. Realizing it was not a drill, the entire staff descended into chaos. The Zero Reverse Incident was still fresh enough in the collective memories of Domino City to induce panic, and these were the people most familiar with its destructive potential. All of the researchers knew, out of all the people working in the building 17 years ago, Rex Goodwin was the only person to survive.

Half of the scientists raced towards the stairs, the other towards panic rooms.

Crow threaded his way through the crowds toward the Momentum. Amidst the confusion, nobody paid him any attention except to shove him out of the way.

"Shut it down!" Lazar's high-pitched screams finally pierced the chaos, "Shut everything down!"

"Shutting down!" Somebody replied shakily, initiating a chorus of 'shutting downs' from whoever was still manning the stations. Within half a minute, the entire building was pitch-dark. Being a top-secret facility, the parts of the building housing the Momentum didn't have windows to the outside.

Crow breathed a sigh of relief, hearing the same sounds arise from the people beside him.

"The back-up power isn't working sir!" Somebody reported after a couple of minutes of fumbling in the dark, "It looks like it burned out with the main power supply!"

Crow tightened his grip on his package and twisted around to avoid one researcher bumbling blindly towards him. That would be Kalin's work, they've been working on it all weekend, to connect the backup generator to the Momentum-powered generator, so when the Momentum went awry for some reason during Yusei's duel (whatever the reason was), the backup generator would be burnt out as well.

Five minutes, that's all he'll need. Crow went into the Momentum storage area easily, no security locks work without electricity. He set Zigzix's replacement Momentum Core down and began to remove the original. His teeth chattered uncontrollably at dismantling something that could blow him up into his atomic constituents, and he bit his tongue so hard that he could taste a piece that fell off, but his hand remained firm.

This is the only chance they would ever have to steal a weapon like this from Neo Domino City, when the Momentum is shut off and the Research Facility was in an uproar. And the Momentum was the only way to truly free the Satellite from Neo Domino City.

Beyond the confusion in the room, he could distinctly hear explosions from outside the building. A particularly well-placed bomb sent shock waves even to his position on the 17th floor. Crow really hopes Chaos wasn't going to overdo it and bring the entire building down.

"Gah!" Lazar screamed. But he was drowned out and swept along by hundreds of panicked staff pushing past him towards the emergency exits.

Crow lifted his head up so the sweat from his brow dripped into his eyes instead of the sensitive equipment. Placing the Core of the Momentum on the floor, he began installing Zigzix's replacement Core. This simplified version could only manage energy output but not absorb any EnerD like the true Momentum. With any luck, it'll buy them enough time.

* * *

* Leo's line was taken directly from the show, because I got lazy.

 **A/N:** The duel was also taken from the show, because I wasn't going to write the entire thing, hopefully this is the least confusing way to write it.

So that's Crow's part in all of this.

The only time Momentum could have conceivably (however barely) been stolen was when they shut it off during the duel between Yusei and Jack. Because you can't exactly steal a live energy processor that powers an entire city... it would disintegrate you into a mixture of gases.

This chapter was a little shorter, a lot of things happened and I don't want to lump everything together. Next chapter would hopefully tie up the other loose ends.


	41. Fortune Cup- The Finale Part II

**A/N:** In the original event of things, Rex Goodwin brought the other four Signers into a supposed 'prophecy' where they saw the destruction of the Satellite. Yusei and Jack dueled, which (obviously) ended with Yusei winning. I didn't write that so I thought I'd mention it.

* * *

Light suddenly flooded the room as the Momentum came back online.

Dark clouds over the stadium began to dissipate as Yusei and Jack appeared again in the stadium. Jack's duel runner crashed onto the ground, Yusei's red runner stopped several feet away just past the finish line. The duel was over, its result obvious. The MC stuttered and announced something noncommittal while struggling to find Goodwin. Uproar filled the still-half-full stadium as spectators saw the results and the obvious winner.

Carly hovered around the paramedics are they took Jack away, Yusei motioned to Akiza before rushing up the tower to find Goodwin. Akiza summoned monsters that parted the crowds and held Sector Security back as she followed him.'

I took a deep breath and closed my eyes against the sudden brightness, resting my forehead against the cool glass walls. I've done everything I can. By now, either Crow had suceeded or he had failed, but that's out of my control. All I can do is wait.

I hate waiting.

The door suddenly banged open. I turned but didn't bother opening my eyes, there's only two people who would rush in here like this right now.

"You weren't there!" Goodwin accused as he stepped into the room. The shock and dismay of only confirming three of the four Signers had temporarily loosenly his tongue.

"Hm?"

"The Signer prophecy," Yusei followed behind immediately, pushing open the door to enter the penthouse. Akiza stayed closely behind him, entertaining herself by toying with the growing number of Sector Security agents. "I was surprise you weren't there."

"How did you know?" I opened my eyes to greet Yusei but directed my question at Goodwin instead, capitalized on his slip of tongue. Goodwin looked on darkly, obviously having realized his mistake. By the way Yusei looked at Goodwin, it seems like he realized it as well."I didn't even know there was a prophecy for the Signers, how did you know I wasn't there?" I pressed. Goodwin stuttered, looking lost for once before regaining his composure.

"That is none of your concern Yuki. You have other things to worry about, like yourself." Goodwin said, a thinly veiled threat.

But my plan had worked.

It was a simple plan really. First summon the Crimson Dragon by having Luna in the stadium, then bringing her out so she wouldn't show up in Goodwin's prophecy. Since the Crimson Dragon could only borrow the Signer's powers while they were inside the stadium, I predicted a similar distance restriction on Goodwin's prophecy. It seems like I was right. That way, I maintain the temporary safety granted to a presumed Signer.

"I only know four of the five Signers, it seems to me like you know all five." I accused. Always good to be on the offensive. "And I think it's about time you shared that information with the rest of us."

"You forget yourself, you're not in a position to ask questions," Goodwin glowered. I looked back defiantly, demanding an answer.

"I have my sources," He replied finally. "I have been preparing for this for the last seventeen years, I assure you that I have no intentions of letting this world go to ruins. If only out of self-interest."

"What do you mean the last seventeen years?" Yusei interrupted, "How did you know to start preparing since Zero Reverse?"

"Oh? Have you not told him?" Goodwin casually tried to turn Yusei against me, I think for the second time now, "I assume you have known for a while."

Yusei kept his eyes trained on Rex while the latter man related his version of the events, being surprisingly truthful other than painting himself in a more sympathetic light.

"My father? My father was the one who caused Zero Reverse?" Yusei repeated, as difficult as it was, it didn't come as a complete surprise. His own research on the Momentum had uncovered Dr. Fudo's work, and it's hard to think that it was a mere coincidence that he shared the same name as the particle that powered the Momentum.

"Dr Fudo had dedicated his life to supplying the world with unlimited energy, he did not intended his work to have such devastating effects. When he discovered its dangers, as had many others, and he had been powerless to stop it." Goodwin continued. "So now it's up to you, as one of the Signers and as his son, to prevent the calamity that is upon us."

Yusei nodded, taken in by the story. I don't really blame him, honest. It was probably a lot to take in and he was probably overwhelmed, and sometimes I do have to use suspension of belief when watching the anime. On a more serious note, it's like finding out your father's Oppenheimer, if Oppenheimer had been the only person involved in the Manhattan Project.

"Yuki though, would have to stay with me." Goodwin continued without a hitch, "Her Signer mark has not been activated, I would like her to stay here for some training until she could tap into this power.

I nodded. That's nothing unexpected.

"Are you sure?" Akiza had backed into the room, the beak of her Blue Rose Dragon hovered dangerously close to Goodwin's neck. "I can bring you out, just say the word."

"I'm sure." I replied.

Akiza was about to say something else, but Yusei pulled her out of the room before she could ask any more questions. Akiza could certainly bring them out of the city, but she can only protect so many people, while Goodwin could take the entire Satellite hostage. Magical monsters or not, one person could only do so much. The two of them could only do what they could do, and leave the rest to fate.

"You trust me enough to stay here?" Goodwin asked rhetorically. I snickered.

"You don't believe a word I said." Rex must have noticed the sarcasm radiating out of every pore of my body.

"The holes in your backstory are bigger than the holes in mine," I commented brazenly, smirking as my words registered, "Honestly, you told us everything except what happened in the past 17 years that made you, the man who helped to bring about the greatest disaster in this city, to the Director of that same city" *

"You don't expect to leave, I see." Rex Goodwin noted. Both of us understood that he wouldn't let a Signer run wild unless he was confident he had them under control.

"Would it have made a difference?" I replied. I never thought he'd let me go back to the Satellite. I had far more influence over Yusei and by extension, the rest of the Signers, than he did. My presence in Domino City would also (supposedly) deter my gang from any undesirable activities in the Satellite. "But with Zephyrs in the Satellite, their influence on Yusei should be enough to keep you on your toes."

"You're not concerned I would imprison the others as well?" Goodwin seems to have accepted my explanation.

"Somebody has to do the heavy-lifting, unless you think Jack could defeat the Dark Signers by himself." I laughed again at the thought. Goodwin conceded with a laugh of his own.

"'Director Goodwin!" The MC's face suddenly popped up on one of the any screens in the room. "What happened? What do I do?"

"Let our audience know Yusei Fudo won the duel," Goodwin took one long look at me before turning away, "It was a technical malfunction, that's all."

"Really? Just like that?" Even the MC didn't sound convinced, "I mean, yes sir! I'll do that!"

"See that you do." Goodwin turned off the monitor, looking slightly annoyed even his own employees didn't believe in his lies.

"Sorry about the technical difficulties ladies and gentlemen, though it looks like a resounding victory for our Satellite upstart Yusei Fudo!"

* * *

Crow had met Chaos after he escaped from the Momentum Research Facility. Amidst the confusion during the power outage and the giant monster appearance, they didn't have too much trouble riding to the pier. Chaos screeched to a stop beside the shipment Mina dictated for the Satellite. It didn't take too much work to switch the Core of the Momentum into the box for the similar-sized microwave and sneak it into the regular shipment. Most guards were responding to the commotion the streets.

"Thank you, Crow. Good job, and welcome to the Zephyrs." Chaos smiled, extending a hand to the ex-Enforcer.

"Yeah, thanks." Crow replied awkwardly, carrying his helmet under his left arm, he shook Chaos' hand with his right. A lot of people in the Satellite still resented the Enforcers for the damage they caused, and it only took stealing the most powerful weapon in the world for him to be accepted.

"I'll message Felice and let her know we're ready. As soon as she catches Sayer, this shipment can go through. It's official Domino government business and they already inspected everything once, so the Sector wouldn't look too hard at what's inside."

"So, you let Sayer go on purpose just so you would have an excuse to delay this shipment?" Crow asked, "Isn't that, a little excessive? You guys couldn't find an easier excuse?"

"Domino shipments are guarded by their own people, so we'll have to find another way back into the Satellite, shouldn't be too long." Chaos ignored the question. It _is_ easy to find excuses, but they must find one that's completely above suspicion, no matter how elaborate or expensive. The Momentum is too important to place at even the slightest risk. It was safe to say that most people didn't suspect the Zephyrs released a homicidal maniac with superpowers who just tried to kill them in order to delay shipment to Satellite by less than a day.

"Fine," Crow grumbled. "But what about the others?"

"Yuki said she'd make sure Fudo and Akiza gets back to Satellite." Chaos assured him.

Crow nodded. He had missed Yusei's duel with Jack, and he can't wait to watch it as soon as he got back!

"Blister would hide out a couple of days with Luna, but he knows his way around, he'll get to the Satellite eventually." If Crow was going to be part of their team, he should know what's going on, "It'll probably take a couple of weeks to get the Momentum up and running, so we'll discuss what to do in the meantime."

"Wait, what about Yuki?" Crow suddenly realized. Yuki rarely _discusses_ anything, and Chaos didn't mention her coming back.

Chaos shrugged.

"What's that supposed to mean?" Crow's eyes widened.

"We need a couple of weeks to get the Momentum up and running," Chaos replied, "We're not going to get that time if we don't have some sort of hostage in Domino to keep Goodwins' suspicions at bay."

"But after we finish the Momentum, after Domino realizes that we finished the Momentum, what's going to happen to her?"

Chaos shrugged again.

Crow felt a chill going down his spine. Yuki was bait, her job is to keep Domino City hooked for long enough while the rest of the Zephyrs finish what needs to be done. But nobody cares what happens to the bait after the fish is caught. On the other hand, Rex Goodwin is known for his enemies disappearing and never being seen again, dead or alive.

"You're just going to let her die?" He demanded.

"Look, it's her own plan. It's not perfect but it's the best we got." Chaos said impatiently, not wanting to discuss the topic any more than he had to. "We all have priorities kid, and the Momentum comes first. It's the only shot we have to defend ourselves and the Satellite's independence. So I'm going to make sure it gets fixed up in the Satellite whatever it takes. Even if it means my life. Or Hers."

"I won't give up like this!" Crow shook his head. "I won't assume something's hopeless and just give up on people. You go run back to the Satellite if you want, I'm going to stay here and get her out!"

Chaos sighed, kids and their idealism. "Don't be stupid, Yuki knows how to take care of herself. When we're ready in the Satellite, she'll be ready to come back."

She has to be.

* * *

 **A/N:** Come on, research and development of the Momentum was lead by a man named Dr Fudo and involved something called Yusei Particles, like that wasn't enough of a clue?

* Almost made a Steve Mnuchin joke here, resisted because I wasn't sure how relevant it is for most people reading this.

I've been really busy lately. I love it, but I really don't have as much time for a time-consuming fanfic that I want to use to discuss the intricacies of productivity, political systems and economic trade-off. So updates will be slower. Frankly, I don't like what I've done a good job with the Fortune Cup arc, it feels too scattered.

But I do plan on finishing this. I have already written the end of the Dark Signer arc . I know exactly how it's going to end and I really like it so I hope to get to post it. I also want to post the porn I wrote, except it wouldn't make sense until the end of the Dark Signer arc, so I have to get there first. In summary, updates will come, eventually.


	42. The Prices We Pay

**A/N:** Every time I take a long time to edit a chapter, I feel like it gets tamer. All the darkest bits are gone, not sure if that's a good thing.

Once again, the views expressed by characters in the story do not necessarily reflect the views of the author.

* * *

"We have to go back!" Yusei announced as he barged into the Zephyrs' meeting room.

He had assumed Yuki had an exit plan, and had just found out otherwise after getting back to the Satellite. He looked across the silent room as though daring anybody to challenge his claim, with a pang, he realized how vacant the room has become. Vincent and Ara had been converted into Dark Signers. Zigzix was tributed to the Earthbound Immortal, now Yuki's trapped in Domino City.

Cyril and Felice sat huddled together over some sales report they're struggling to understand. Kalin was still working on infrastructure design and looked up to give him a blank look. Crow didn't notice Yusei's entry at all. He had headphones on, playing heavy metal so loudly Yusei could hear it from the doorway, as he designed Satellite's grade 3 curriculum. Chaos was in a one-sided, heated argument with Galen, who was either listening impassively or had fallen asleep with his eyes open.

'And then there were seven'. He remembered Yuki's voice, laughing, now haunting him.

"I won't leave anyone behind! I can't let her be taken hostage in Domino City." Yusei didn't mention a name and he didn't have to.

"It's her own idea." Cyril argued. Chaos had remained conspicuously silent.

"To what? Be locked up for life?" Yusei countered angrily, a rare emotion to see on him.

"It's the only way to buy us enough time." Felice defended.

"And look what you're paying with!" Yusei replied.

"She can take care of herself." Chaos added halfheartedly.

"And what if she can't? How would you find out?When you read her obituary?" Yusei looked at Kalin meaningfully, remembering back to the despair he felt when the prison security told him Kalin Kessler was no longer of this world. Kalin looking down, biting on his lips but didn't say a word.

"I'm going back." Yusei said firmly, once again getting his emotions under control. "Whether the rest of you come with me or not."

"No."

"What?" Yusei looked at Galen, surprised. The pink-haired sixteen-year-old had been entrusted with control of Zephyr's security force since Vincent became a Dark Signer, the experience had quickly toughened him up.

Before Yuki left, she told him the real purpose of the Momentum, a weapon to drain the gods and in turn bring prosperity back into the world. She _only_ told him because Chaos was too emotional, and Felice was too attached to Vincent, who was already a Dark Signer. So he alone had the necessary information to prioritize. As much as it pained him to say, Yuki's return isn't a priority.

"I said no, Fudo. We have no leverage. If Goodwin attacks Satellite as revenge for Yuki's escape-" Galen's large brown eyes might as well have been filled with ice.

"Goodwin needs us to fight the Dark Signers." Yusei protested before he could finish.

"Goodwin and Roman are brothers, we have proof they're still on talking terms. One phone call and he can send Dark Signers on a murdering spree in the Satellite. Would you really refuse to fight the Dark Signers then? Or even if he didn't, would you really let the Dark Signers destroy the world because of a feud of Goodwin?"

"We have no leverage until we get the Momentum up and running," Felice explained, "The best thing you can do now is to work on the Momentum."

"What can it do?" Yusei asked suspiciously, earning a couple of chuckles around the room, that's the exact same reaction they had when they heard the idea.

"Mutually Assured Destruction." Felice said quietly. "And the rest of the world would be spared."

Galen gritted his teeth. That's what the rest of the Zephyrs believed, the Momentum could absorb enough energy to blow up the Old Reactor in the Satellite, thereby destroying the passage of the Netherworld Monster into this world. And both the Satellite and Domino City.

Yusei paled.

"Grow up, kiddo. Nervin should be working on this thing already, why don't you go play with him?" Chaos patted him on the shoulder, "Let me take care of the rest, I'll get it done no matter what."

* * *

"Good morning," Goodwin greeted at the sound of his door opening as Lazar admitted his first visitor. He stood with his back to the door, pointedly ignoring his visitor, looking instead out the window and towards the city he had built. When Yliaster put him into power ten years ago, Domino City was little better than Satellite's current state, it was him who turned it into the envy of the east coast. No matter how questionable his methods had been, the results were the only thing that mattered. Just like it's the only thing that matters now.

"Good morning, Yuki, you had a good night's sleep I trust?"

"'Morning, Director Goodwin," I nodded, cutting straight to the chase. "There's something I wanted to discuss as soon as possible."

"I think I can imagine what this is about." Goodwin took a folded sticky note from his drawer and flattened it on the desk. "Somebody gave this to Lazar last night, and paid him a lot of money to pass it on to you. He thought it was a phone number for you to reach somebody out of the country, someone to help you escape Domino. Naturally, he took the bribe and passed the message on to me. I told him to give you a photocopy."

"I guess I expected no less," I chuckled, running my finger across the string of numbers, "Then you know what it is?"

Goodwin took a pen out of the same drawer and drew a dollar sign in front. "I must admit, our Fortune Cup had garnered more attention than I anticipated. Domino would have hosted the betting if I wasn't so opposed to gambling, now I'm glad I didn't. Several companies went bankrupt because of you. Congratulations Yuki, you're possibly the richest person in the country right now."

Lazar, who was standing beside the door, gasped. He promptly covered his mouth with his hands.

"Not for too much longer." I wrote another number down on paper. "I've been thinking of acquiring a certain piece of land around the Satellite."

"That'll get you half of Domino City." Goodwin commented.

"Can I borrow a map?" I accepted the map Goodwin offered and drew a circle-ish shape, including within its boundaries both the Satellite and the Facilities to the north, as well as the several hundred miles of land in between, extending to the coast on the east and west.

"That-" Goodwin paused. Even he didn't expect that's what she wanted to do with the money. "That's very ambitious of you, you're taking more than 5% of the country."

"You know as well as I do most of this area, with the dubious exception of Satellite, is too polluted for human habitation let alone usage." I replied, "The price I offered is more than fair." To drain the energy from the all-powerful monsters, I need somewhere to put it. In the absence of a huge capacitor, the earth is the best place I could think of, with the added benefit of restoring land for human habitation and usage. It's just one of the many reasons I have to stay in the Domino for the time being.

"And if I were to refuse?" Goodwin asked.

"Or if the message didn't get to me," I added with a grin, "Then some people from the Zephyrs would approach Tokyo with the same offer. It's hard to say exactly who has control over it anyways."

Bureaucracy.

"You've planned out every detail, I see," Goodwin marveled. " _Why?_ "

"I don't understand. If I were going to plan, I'd obviously want to be thorough."

"You've planned every detail for the Satellite to grow and expand, but whatever you do, you're not one of them." His eyes bore into mine, the conviction in his words were astonishing. Or maybe it shouldn't be, seeing as he was probably speaking from experience. "You're always alone in dangerous situations, left to find your own way out, have you ever wondered why that is?"

"I always find myself in situations where 'strength in numbers' doesn't apply." I replied a little defensively.

"Is that so? No matter how much you care for the Satellite, no matter how much you work or sacrifice for it, no matter how much control you have, you're not one of them and you never will be. Half of Satellite may crumble at your command, but you'll never fit in no matter how much you try."

"You know, Vincent mentioned you'd fit in better than I do." I laughed.

"Not an inaccurate summary of your situation."

"But why would I struggle to fit in when I was destined to stand out?"I paused, refusing to admit that his 'never fitting in' comment had gotten to me just a little bit, "Just because I don't fit in doesn't me I don't belong. And you can make the process a lot easier by allowing the Satellite to belong to me."

Goodwin didn't look too happy. Of course not, he never had that kind of options while stuck in the Satellite. "I will accept your proposal, on the condition that you stay in Domino City."

I looked up without even a hint of surprise. "What do you have in mind?"

"I believe the reason your mark was never activated is that you never cared about any of the duels you were involved in." Goodwin surmised not entirely inaccurately, and I admitted as much.

"The Professor might have had a chance, but he was too weak." I told him honestly.

"If you'd like, I can give you a reason to fight." Goodwin said it like it were a sincere offer, the malice behind his words were evident.

"Such as?"

"Your friends in the Satellite?" He proposed airily.

"Tokyo would intervene long before you could get your hands on them." I assured him with genuine confidence.

"You have faith in your friends in high places?" He tried.

"I have faith in my friends in the Satellite and the amount of damage they're capable of." Especially now that the glycerin had been shipped back 'for moisturizer' and definitely not explosives.

Goodwin conceded to my claims with a light grimace.

"Nonetheless, it might be much easier for you if you cooperated from the start. I have only your best interest in mind." He shifted the subject.

"Which is what, exactly?"

"To activate your Signer mark." He replied, "In anticipation for the war."

"What exactly do you have in mind?"

"I will find for you, the best duelists in the world, and you will face progressively more difficult challenges until your mark is activated by the game. Of course, if you lose and your mark still doesn't show up," Goodwin glanced at Lazar, who immediately stood at attention, "We'll deal with that accordingly."

"Great. I'll send you a list of the cards I need," I replied. That should buy me some time. "And you can send the completed contract to me after you process the land purchase." I handed the map back to him.

"You'll see the contract tomorrow." Goodwin nodded, they both understood, the price for the land was as much the money as it was her stay in Domino City. Still, it doesn't hurt to keep her happy for now. Law, borders and possession would be meaningless soon enough.

"That's a lot of money, Ms Tono." Lazar threatened as he moved to let me pass. "You should be careful, people have been killed for far less."

"I think I'll be fine." I assured him. "The bet was made in the name of the Zephyrs, so it would need the consent of the majority of Zephyrs for any funds to be withdrawn."

"But it is your money, isn't it?" Lazar's eyes shone with greed, "For example, in the event of your death, it would go to the state, _us._ "

"Upon my death, the Zephyrs would be evenly divided between Chaos, Galen and Vincent, well, I guess Felice now. I have designed the will so that no alterations can be made within the next two years." Two years should be enough to sort everything out. Anime timeline were usually a little obscure, but I was pretty sure each season was a year and the 5Ds series had like 2 seasons, right?*

"You wrote a will?" Goodwin fell silent for a second, mulling over what the teenager must have been thinking when she realized the very real possibly of her own death, then planned for it accordingly. "Surely you're too young to have a will."

"Apparently not." I laughed, gesturing to my surroundings, "It's useful isn't it?"

I brushed past Lazar as I walked out, shoving him roughly out of the way like I normally did, keeping my tongue between my teeth to keep them from chattering out of fear. I had been no more than a step away from whatever they did to prisoners in the Facilities, and I don't mean the prison in the dubbed version.

Goodwin still seems convinced that I'm a Signer, for now. But if I do lose a duel, he would be equally convinced that all I needed were 'motivation'. Reproach from Tokyo might be a nuisance, but at the same time, that's all it would be for him, a nuisance. Not nearly enough of deterrent to keep him from a more drastic measure of motivation.

X

"If I may we do have another way, Director." Lazar offered as the teenager left the room, his eyes gleaming with pleasure at the idea. He despised the woman, for more reason than he cared to count. "One that allows you to be much more in control of the process."

"Yes?" Goodwin replied shortly.

"Well," Lazar leaned a little closer, "If you give me some time, Director, and with your permission of course, I could break her, I'm sure of it."

Goodwin glanced at Lazar, not saying a word. Lazar correctly understood the prompt to go on.

"I know you need her alive as a Signer, of course," Lazar continued, "But there're other ways. I could get her addicted. Cocaine for example, usually only takes one dose. If you're worried about her being able to get her hands on a substitute, we do have new opiates the Satellite can't yet manufacture, she wouldn't be able to get it anywhere but here. From you I mean. Give me a month, and I promise you, she'd do anything you say for a high." Lazar snarled.

His smile was suggestive enough that Goodwin had to hide his shudder.

"We don't have a month," Goodwin wasn't sure if he was relieved or disappointed Lazar's plan wouldn't work, nor was he sure which emotion he should be more concerned about.

"Might I suggest sensory deprivation then?" Lazar tried again. "To deprive somebody of sight, sound, smell and touch. It would drive the average person insane within a day. A Signer might last a bit longer, but certainly not a week."

"I need her sane." Goodwin rebuked again, instinctively.

Lazar looked disappointed, Goodwin wasn't sure if he felt the same and it terrified him that he didn't know.

"There's a easier way. A life in Domino city had been enough temptation for Jack Atlas to switch to our side within a day, Yuki Tono wouldn't last much longer. She had lost the creature comforts once before, she wouldn't be able to resist regaining it." Goodwin said aloud, more for his own benefit than Lazar's. So this Hope of the Satellite that he would have wished for ten years ago would fall by his own hands, one way or another. She must fall, so that a better world might rise.

"It shall be as you wish, Director," Lazar bowed. Goodwin gritted his teeth, turning his eyes once again toward the city he had built.

* * *

"Still know where this is?" Chaos skidded to a stop in another nameless street in the Satellite, waiting for Crow to do the same. _Pearson's falling body flashed in front of his eyes_

"Yeah," Crow got off his runner, walking till he stopped directly beneath a nondescript seven-story building, staring at the sidewalk in front of it. He didn't see Robert Pearson when he jumped off the roof three years ago. By the time Crow got there, his body had long been cleaned up. All Crow ever saw was a dark uneven stain on the pavement. Crow got down on one knee, tracing the bloody outlines that had been washed off by the relentless passing of time, leaving only a maddening sameness on the cracked pavement.

"They're remodeling the place," Chaos rang his fingers along the wall. _This is where Chaos had lived, just across the street from the building Pearson chose to jump off of_ _._ "I mean _we_ are remodeling the place. Knocking these crumbling buildings down so they can put up safe housing. Soon all of this would be gone."

"Why did you bring _me? Here_?" Crow asked, he certainly didn't know Chaos well enough to reminisce with the man.

"Pearson had done everything he could for you kids," _He should know, he knew Pearson for what seemed like forever, until he left because Pearson's dreams got too dangerous for both of them._ Chaos began his rehearsed speech, "I was wondering if you would be willing to do the same."

"What do you mean?" Crow asked.

"Pearson gave his life for something he thought was worthwhile," _He remembered Pearson looking his way, locking eyes with him where he sat inside his own room, before jumping off._ _Chaos didn't know why_ _Pearson ran across half the city while being chased by the Sector, only to jump off the building across from his, He didn't know and he didn't want to find out._

Chaos pointed to where Pearson's body had lain, speaking with a twisted smile, ""Pearson gave his life for something he thought was worthwhile" _Whatever that was,_ "I wanted to ask if you wanted to sell yours too."

"Sell me life?" Crow repeated incredulously. "You can't afford it. All lives are priceless, remember?"

"Are they?" Chaos offered a forbearing, almost fatherly smile. Crow shuddered. "How could you still believe that, grow up in the Satellite?"

"Of course it is! I dare you to look any of the kids you take care of, and tell them their lives has a price."

"But they do, just because I can't say it doesn't change anything. " Chaos stuttered a little, dragging the conversation back onto the script he prepared, "Every life has the potential to be priceless. I have yet to know of one that is. If you want to know how much a life is worth, don't look at them when they're born, look at them before they die, and tell me how much their life was worth. Had it really be priceless just because they were alive? That they existed however briefly to have experienced the good and evils of this world? Or were their lives utterly mundane and replaceable, characterized only by the millions of people who inevitably suffers the same fate?"

"It was irreplaceable to them!" Crow protested

"But does their opinion matter when it'll be buried forever with them?"

"It," Crow stuttered.

"Every life _has_ a price, kid." Chaos chuckled. "We may not agree with the number of the tag, but every life has a price, and that's why I brought you here, so we could discuss yours."

"You're serious?" Crow took a couple of steps back towards his runner, his eyes darting quickly to find possible escape routes.

"We're demolishing this area to construct a new community dedicated towards kids who lost their parents during the Incident. My idea." Chaos said a little smugly.

"What do you want from me then?" Crow asked guardedly.

"What's your life worth to you? Is it worth a guarantee that all the kids you take care of would survive to adulthood? Get an education? Have a career?"

"I-" Crow stuttered. In the Satellite, people have died for far less.

A couple of months ago, before opportunities in the Satellite flourished, he might have jumped at the chance and been grateful for the privilege. Now his life was worth a little more, because things he needed to survive were worth a little less. But that might not last, very few good things in the Satellite does. To give up his life for...

"You want me to go into Domino to get Yuki out?" Crow realized, that's riskiest mission they have so far,"I know it's dangerous but you could have just asked." Without all this depressing price of life stuff.

"No. That's my job. Remember, I'm the adult. As long as I'm still around, it's not your turn. But if I don't come back from this, there's something I need you to do."

"What is it?" If Chaos hadn't led with the frankly freaky heart-to-heart, Crow would have just said yes. Not he's not so sure.

"Our last recourse is the Momentum." Chaos clenched his fists. "As far as I understand, if the Signers lose and Dark Signers win, the entire world faces complete annihilation. So we got a secret weapon, Momentum."

"So?" Crow knew that much at least, he _was_ there.

"When the last Signer is about to lose," Chaos continued, "We would activate Momentum, which would destroy the entire Satellite and a large part of Domino City, which would destroy the Dark Signers and the path the Netherworld monster uses to cross over into this world."

Crow nodded, that part was never explicit but it did hover in the back of his mind. Then he understood. "You mean everybody in the Satellite would be dead! if we don't want everybody in the world to die."

"That's right." Chaos agreed, "So I need you to stop that from happening, or at least give us an extra layer of security."

"How?" Crow felt uneasy. Chaos shouldn't need a build-up like this to convince him to save the Satellite.

"If I don't come back... Well, if Yuki doesn't come back, I need you to kill the Dark Signers." Chaos replied.

"You want me to... Kill?" Crow repeated vacantly.

" _Every single one of them_ , if you don't want every kid in the Satellite to risk death because of your sentimentality."

"I can't!" Crow replied instinctively. "I can't kill!"

"Then you're killing the entire Satellite, if the time ever comes. Inaction is still a choice Crow, you're not less guilty because you didn't do anything."

"The Signers might win!"

"Will you risk one million lives on a handful of duels? Do you have the right to gamble their lives away?"

"I'm not a killer!" Crow said desperately.

"You will be. Then only difference is how many people will die because of you. Five Dark Signers, or one million Satellite lives." Chaos paused, seeing the wavering resolve on Crow's face. "When I leave, you'll take over for me in the Zephyrs. With the resources I have under my control. there's no way you can fail."

"It," Crow recoiled, "Why are you pushing this on _me?_ " He asked a little resentfully. He had never been one to shy away from responsibility, but murder goes against everything he ever believes in, but it doesn't look like he has a choice.

"You're the most likely to say yes," Chaos said naturally, "And you're the most likely to succeed. The rest of the Zephyrs know Vincent and Ara too well, they wouldn't be capable of it."

Right. Crow remembered. Vincent and Ara both became Dark Signers not too long ago, to eliminate all Dark Signers, he would have to kill them too.

"I-" Crow decided to follow his heart and-

X

"Ahem!"

Chaos looked up in surprise as Felice stopped her motorcycle nearby. Her motorcycle is the quietest of the bunch and it always annoyed him to have her sneak up.

"I certainly hope our government appointments takes more than a decision by the predecessor." Felice teased gently.

"How did you find me?" Chaos wasn't at all amused.

"Come on, you really thought I wouldn't check up on you after something like that? It might as well have been a will." Felice smiled tiredly. "I've been here since your 'price of life' speech. You're not alone in this Chaos, we stick together, so it's certainly not your burden alone to bear. If it comes to that, the blood is on all of our hands."

"You'll pick up the slack when I'm gone?" Chaos asked.

Felice nodded.

"Crow's a good kid." Chaos continued.

Felice nodded again.

"Do you think you could name this place after me when I'm gone?" Chaos asked hopefully.

"You don't need to write your will yet We have a secret weapon."

"Momentum?"

"Not yet, but almost as good, we have the Black Rose now, remember?"

* * *

*Lol, the 5Ds had like 4 seasons, but it felt more like 2, as in half of the seasons didn't feel complete or had enough of a plotline to stand on its own.

 **A/N:** That wasn't so bad, right? Ended on a positive note and all.

I got rid of the darkest parts because frankly, they were depressing, even for me. Couldn't resist keeping a tiny bit of it in still, anybody wanna guess why Pearson chose to jump off where he did? There're two ways to understand it, which is why Chaos said 'he didn't want to find out'. :P I feel evil. XD


	43. The New Champion

**Disclaimer:** I do not own YGO 5D's

* * *

"Remind me to never come back to this place again," Yuki mumbled as she ate the frosting off of her donut and stuffed the rest into a trash can beside the sidewalk, "I don't think there's any chocolate in their chocolate donuts."

That's something else Jack never would have done, throwing out perfectly good food. That's something Mina wouldn't even do, Mina thought as she bit into her own donut. Mina had gotten into a habit of mentally comparing the old and new champions of Domino City. Both were proud, assertive, aggressive to the point of being hostile, but the similarities end there.

It's the tiny habits that gave them away. Yuki never eats the crust on her pizza. Jack would wear the exact same outfit for a week if he could (and as she had explained, that's not something he could do anymore as a public figure representing Domino City). Yuki believes wifi is a basic human right. Jack believes earning a basic living wage (admittedly, by Mina's standards) should require at least 12 hours per day and a seven-day work week. More fundamentally, Yuki has an inexplicable sense of security, in her own ability if not in the world. Jack was much more guarded and tend to strike preemptively at anything that might resemble a threat. Mina didn't know which, if either was better, but both seem to be equally adored by the Domino populace as long as they never lose a game.

"You seem used to this," She commented, trying to pretend like Goodwin didn't feed her the question and failing miserably.

"What, you mean a job that can pay for adequate food, clothing and shelter? Yeah I'm sort of used to that. I _do_ get the same in the Satellite, at least _I_ get the same in the Satellite."

That's not quite accurate though, Mina reflected, even given Yuki's situation, her life in the Satellite must have been very different from Domino City. When Jack first came to Domino, it had taken him months to get used to the conveniences of daily life (Hot water, decent roads, grocery stores, healthcare access should have been the first things to come to mind, but the first thing she thought of were duel shops. Shame on Mina), the casual wastefulness of city life, and the unlimited access to every non-essential item under the sun, only possible in a metropolis. Yet everything was like second nature to Yuki. She integrated seamlessly like she was born here, and maybe she was.

"So I'll go to the spa then," Mina smiled playfully, that's something else Jack never would have done- getting her a spa day on Goodwin's account. She wasn't really worried about Yuki running away, why would she leave the fame and money in Domino to go back to the barren wasteland of Satellite? They don't even _have_ donuts! "Are you sure you're gonna be safe? You're becoming quite the celebrity."

"Don't be ridiculous, this city worships me, I'm as safe here as I will ever be."

That's not too far from the truth, Mina secretly agreed. Yuki has taken Jack's place at Domino City as its new 'ruler'. (Please note the quotation mark, quotation marks are very important.) She has won 29 games in a row in the past week. 29 games because, according to Yuki, 29 is a good number. Everyday five thousand people from the City's population of two hundred thousand would come to see her play, the arena would be filled with an equal number of tourists. Or in Yuki's words, WHY. She later elaborated to describe it as a gross and unacceptable waste of human resources.

Yuki could probably meet a fan on every street corner to help her out if necessary. Director Goodwin had built a city that revolves around and worships duel monsters, Mina sometimes wonders if that plan hasn't backfired.

"Alright, I'll see you in a bit." Yuki wave goodbye, merging seamlessly into the Domino crowd.

Mina noticed the crowd that naturally parted for their new hero and couldn't help but be reminded of Jack again.

Unlike a Jack, Yuki has fit in very well in Domino City. She wore a white leather bomber jacket with a blood-colored Z in the back, over dark blue tank tops, a matching pair of blue jeans and dark brown riding boots. She would have stood out, except a third of the kids her age are now wearing the exact same outfit.

X

I waved goodbye to a gullible Mina and set on my way, still wearing that frankly ridiculous outfit. The truth is I had chosen this outfit specifically for its ostentatious nature. The original plan was to distract the audience with my outfit so hopefully they won't notice my face when I make an escape in something less attention-grabbing.

For better or for worse I don't need to do that anymore. Unlike Jack, I willingly released the rights to those clothes so my exact outfit had flooded the streets of Domino, down to the red Z covering half of the back of the jacket.

It's been a little over a week since my stay in Domino City and I had won 29 games in the meantime. It really wasn't difficult. Backed by Goodwin's resources, I finally built a Shaddoll deck. For those not familiar with the game, Shaddolls came out about 5 years after 5Ds did, a lifetime by YGO standards, and could naturally trounce pure synchro decks from this era. I even tried what Goodwin did in his final duel, standing still while dueling people who turbo dueled. Personally, I thought I had an unfair advantage in that game, seeing as I could actually concentrate and not worry about dying in a fiery crash.

Despite my recent victories, my non-existent mark has yet to be activated and Goodwin is becoming impatient. I don't know how much time I have left, or what would happen (especially to me) if Goodwin's patience runs out before the Momentum is complete. I did promise I'd act as the diversion, so I can't leave yet. But it doesn't hurt to look for an escape route now.

I darted into an alley to slip on a large sun hat that hid most of my face, then made my way back into the crowd and towards the Pier.

X

"Ms Tono!"

I didn't make it more than five feet before I heard my name called out in a shouting whisper, like its owner was trying to keep my identity a secret. I didn't recognize the voice, so kept my head down and walked faster. Maybe they had the wrong person, I thought hopefully.

"Ms. Tono! You _are_ Ms. Tono, aren't you?" The voice caught up. It belonged to a man with blue hair and blue eyes dressed in a sector security uniform. He took off his helmet as he approached me, fidgeting with his own duel disk.

"Can I help you, officer?" I turned around to focus on the empty space beside his right ear, offering a practiced media-ready smile. Looking at 'armed' officers armed with a gaming device gives me a headache every time.

"Ms. T-Tono-sama! I'm your biggest fan!" He stuttered, unbuttoning the collar of his security uniform to reveal 'my' outfit underneath. No wonder he looked so stuffy, he's gonna get a heat stroke in another month or two. "I'm your biggest fan! Can I get your autograph?It's Wade, W-A-D-E." He fumbled a bit looking for a pen, then held up his duel disk for me to sign.

"Sure. You can call me Yuki." I took the pen unenthusiastically.

"Yes Yuki-sama!" He clutched the duel disk close, careful not to smudge the ink on his uniform. "Can you tell me when your first turbo duel's going to be? I've only been to half of your games because of work, but I'll definitely go to your first turbo duel!"

"We'll see." I replied with even less enthusiasm. I had little respect for people who skipped work to go watch a card game, even if that card game was my own. "Wait, how did you know it was me?" I asked, wanting ideas to improve on my disguise.

"I recognized your duel disk, of course!" He said matter-of-factly.

I looked down at my standard-issue, mass-produced, completely non-descript duel disk and back up at him, he looked back at me with a wide-eyed innocence. '

 _Whatever_.

X  
I had managed to get away from Wade in the afternoon, but didn't really make it to the pier. People crowding me for autographs marked a clear trail, so it might be difficult to find a secret escape route. I needed some way to get out of Domino when the time comes, but I'm out of ideas. I had fans, and therefore influence. But that's meaningless when faced up against somebody who had an army. Even if that army is armed with duel disks.

A black duel runner roared to a stop beside me, the eighth to have done that today. I barely looked up, wondering if they wanted an autograph or a duel this time.

"I may be the last and only person in the Satellite coming for you, are you coming?" Chaos had been sure before he came, now he was no longer sure if Yuki would want to come back at all. The teenager in front of him was barely recognizable, she seemed to naturally fit into the high class lives of Domino City (again, insert Yuki's sobs here), more than she ever did fit into the Satellite.

"The Momentum?" I asked tentatively.

"It's done, Fudo finished it this morning." Chaos replied.

"Then of course." I hopped on, clutching the back of his jacket. "What's the plan?"

"That's just like something you'd ask," Chaos laughed, "I happen to have a great plan this time- We ride!" He revved up the engine and raced out of the parking garage, cutting corners to evade security that's already getting on our tails.

"That's it?" I muttered disapprovingly. I'm no longer under 24-7 surveillance by Sector Security, but even they can't fail to notice a duel runner racing by to pick me up.

"This time, Yuki, you have to get used to doing things the Satellite way." Chaos grinned, handing me a duel disk electronically linked to his duel runner, and activating his own. "Before you came along, we used to duel our way out."

Looking at the three security duel runners catching up to us, I banged my head into Chaos' back, "I don't think this is a great plan!"

That might have been an understatement, we didn't even get out of the parking lot before we got locked into a duel.

"Ah-ha! I knew you Satellite scum didn't belong in Domino City!" Trudge laughed, "No matter how many duels Lazar set up for you! Now let's see how you do against the best of the best!"

"Who? Us?" The Sector agent beside him asked incredulously, I recognized his voice as belonging to Wade, the sector guard I had met earlier this afternoon. "Against Yuki-sama? You'll get destroyed, Ushio."

"Yes, us!" A third duel runner moved in from the left, trying to edge Chaos' duel runner off the road. "We can defeat any satellite! If you don't think so, you can just watch from the sidelines."

"You said it, Dean." Trudge shouted over the rumblings of the duel runners, "Now let's duel these satellites back into the gutters!"

"Speed World Activate." Came the voice that sounded suspiciously like Kaiba's computer, locking Me, Dean, Chaos and Trudge into a duel.

"Make your move!" Trudge said smugly, obviously noticing my discomfort and attributing it to the duel. "I know you never were in a turbo duel, so I'll crush you!"

Obviously I'd be uncomfortable. I'm sitting on the back of a motorcycle going 200 miles an hour being chased by the police force. There'd be a problem if I were comfortable right now.

"Go Yuki-sama!" Wade rode alongside us, holding up his phone as a camera (the newest Zephyrs' 'innovation'). He looked ecstatic, "Let's see how your crush Sector Security!"

He received a disparaging look from everybody else.

* * *

 **Turn 1: Yuki's turn.**

 **Yuki 4000; Dean 4000; Chaos 4000; Trudge 4000**

"Alright," I shrugged, directing my attention to the upcoming duel, and immediately recognizing what a mistake that was. Chaos' duel runner made a sharp turn as I was drawing, and I promptly lost three of the six cards I just drew.

"I knew you can't take the speed of the game!" Trudge snickered.

"Yuki-sama!" Wade called out from the sidelines, "You can still do this."

"I know." I replied, unfazed, placing the remaining three cards facedown in the trap card zone. I say 'trap card zone' because I didn't have a turbo deck, as such, my normal set of spell cards would automatically be removed from the deck in a turbo duel, leaving my deck with 44 cards from its usual 60.

 **Turn 2: Dean's turn**  
 **Yuki 4000; Dean 4000; Chaos 4000; Trudge 4000;**

"My move!" Dean drew, dodging Wade's attempts to bump him off the road.

"Come on buddy, if you have that much faith in your hero, let me duel her! I summon **Marauding Captain (lv3, 1200/400)** , in attack mode. Being the leader, my captain's effect let's me bring out another fighter to the field, so I summon **Jutte Fighter (lv 2, tuner, 700/900)** onto the field. I tune my level 3 Marauding Captain with my level 2 Jutte Fighter to synchro summon, **Goyo Chaser (lv5, 1900/1000)**."

I looked unimpressed at the giant man-shaped beast that appeared on the field, looking very much like it was wielding a small-appliance. Or I would have looked unimpressed if I weren't so impressed by the fact that these people were playing a card game while riding a motorcycle like it was the most natural thing in the world. I found it surprisingly (or maybe unsurprisingly) hard to play a card game while on a motorcycle. Even though I'm not driving, I still feel like I could fall off at any second. You know, gravity and wind resistance and all.

"Goyo Chaser, attack Yuki directly!" Dean commanded. He couldn't attack Chaos yet, since Chaos didn't have a turn.

"I activate **Shaddoll Core (lv9, 1450/1950)** , in defense mode." I commanded without bothering to look at the field. If my duels in the past week are any indication, 5D era decks would be eviscerated by my light and dark Shaddoll deck.

"I set three cards and end my turn." Dean announced.

 **Turn 3: Chaos' turn**  
 **Yuki 4000; Dean 3950; Chaos 4000; Trudge 4000;**

"My turn!" Chaos laughed as he took us from the empty road onto the busy highway.

The next thing I saw was a bright light, the headlight of a apparently uninvolved truck, the driver swearing loudly as she swerved out of the way.

'What the hell?' I had meant to say, but all I managed was a quiet eep when I realized we were going against the traffic.

"I play-" Chaos was actually reaching for his duel disk, while going at 200 miles per hour, against the traffic, during rush hour.

"What? No, you're not playing anything!" I protested as soon as I could speak again. "Let me worry about the duel. You just focus on the road and not get us killed."

As evidenced by Chaos' most recent mistake, people need to concentrate when driving.

"This is all your fault, you know." Chaos complained, realizing I was going forcing him to skip his turn.

"How is this my fault?" I rolled my eyes even though he couldn't see it.

"I got used to driving on the right side of the road in the Satellite thanks to you." He continued, darting in front of another car to bring us a little closer to the correct (left) side of the road. "In case you haven't noticed, the rest of the country drove on the left side."

Truth is, I noticed. But while technically both are perfectly legitimate, the alternative just felt so strange to me, so naturally, when I (had first Nervin, then Kalin) designed the road system in the Satellite, I set lanes on the right.

"Just shut it and drive." I grumbled. It was not a mistake, not exactly. I didn't want to have to get used to driving on the 'wrong' side of the road, in case I forgot and ended up driving against the traffic.

"Are you two done chatting?" Trudge interrupted. Somehow, all three sector agents had followed us through traffic and the thus the duel continues.

Wade gave me a thumbs up, still holding his phone in his other hand. I worry for him.

"Chaos." I warned, Chaos hmmphed but relented.

"I forfeit the game." Chaos disconnected his duel disk from his duel runner, the light representing his lifepoints in the game went dark.

"Don't think we're gonna do the same!" Dean shouted (its the only way to be heard), "If you think you can defeat the two of us, then so be it!"

I didn't respond because I was too busy clinging to Chaos and not falling off.

 **Turn 4: Trudge's turn**  
 **Yuki 4000; Dean 3950; Trudge 4000;**

"It's my move!" Trudge drew a card. "First, I play the spell card Count Up, and I'll send Stygian Street Patrol (lv4, 1600/1200) to the graveyard to special summon **Stygian Security (lv1, 100/600)** from my hand. Next, I summon **Fortress Warrior (lv2, 600/1200)** , in defense mode! I tune my level 2 Fortress Warrior with my level 1 Stygian Security to synchro summons **Goyo Defender (lv3, 1000/1000)**. By his special ability, I can special summon **2 more Goyo Defenders** from my extra deck!"

A total of three Goyo Defenders took up Trudge's field. By the rules of this turbo duel, he could also control his partner's monsters during his turn.

"Goyo Chaser gains 300 attack for each Earth-Warrior type Synchro monsters I control, increasing his attack to an earth-shattering 2800. Now my warrior, destroy Shaddoll Core!"

My monsters was sliced in half and disappeared back into the shadows.

"Now, Goyo Defender, attack!"

"I activate Needle Bug Nest." I said, glad my duel disk was voice-activated. "This card sends 5 cards from the top of my deck to my graveyard."

In order, the five cards were Shaddoll Beast (lv5, 2200/1700), Scrap Iron Scarecrow, Electromagnetic Turtle, Shaddoll Falco (lv2, tuner, 800/1400) and Shaddoll Squamata (lv4, 1800/1000).

"Shaddoll Beast allows me to draw a card, **Shaddoll Falco** brings itself back onto the field when discarded, and Shaddoll Squamata lets me discard another Shaddoll to the graveyard, so I choose Shaddoll Hedghog, which lets me bring Shaddoll Beast into my hand."

Seeing as Shaddoll Falco had 1400 defense and Goyo Defender only had 1000 attack, Trudge stopped his monster.

"Yay! Yuki-sama 1, Sector Security 0!" Wade cheered from beside Dean.

"You're an embarrassment to your uniform, Wade you know that?" Trudge complained. "I'll place two more card face-down and end my turn."

 **Turn 5: Yuki's turn**  
 **Yuki 4000; Dean 3950; Trudge 4000;**

"Now let's see," I looked at my hand, pleased. It shouldn't be too hard to get rid of at least one of them this turn, how which synchro monster should I use?" "I set one card facedown," Just in case I forget at the end of the turn. "And flip summon Shaddoll Falco to bring back **Shaddoll Beast** from the graveyard."

Trudge must have seen the look of victory in my eyes. He raced towards our duel runner. The sector runner hit the side of our front wheel. Chaos barely managed to keep his duel runner straight. I was pressed flat against Chaos. At least this time, I didn't lose either of the two cards I had.

"End turn." The voice of Kaiba's computer said unexpectedly.

I looked up in confusion.

"I can't believe you were dumb enough to press the End Turn button on your duel disk!" Dean taunted, "I've heard of it happening, but I never believed it!"

"Huh, didn't know that was a thing." I admitted. "Oh well."

 **Turn 6: Dean's turn**

 **Yuki 4000; Dean 3950; Trudge 4000;**

"Now let's see how your deck stands up to an onslaught of warriors! I summons **Jutt Fighter (lv2, tuner, 700/900)** and tune him with two of Ushio's Goyo Defender (lv3, 1000/1000) to synchro summon, out of the reaches of justice is order, come forth your majesty and claim your throne **, Goyo King (lv8, 2800/2000)**."

"Not only that, I'll activate the speed spell Final Attack. At the cost of two of my speed counters, I double his majesty's attack for this turn. He'll be send to the graveyard at the end of the turn, but you won't last that long. This is the end!" Dean proclaimed, activating one of the face-down cards on the field.

"Goyo King (lv8, 5600/2000), destroy Shaddoll Falco (lv2, tuner, 800/1400) and wipe out her life points!"

I felt Chaos' muscles tense.

"Oh no!" Wade's hand on his duel runner tightened, the other hand instinctively moved away so he wouldn't film the fall of his hero.

"Activate trap, Dark Renewal." I flipped over my trap card, "This card let's me tribute one of my own spellcasters and your monster to summon a spellcaster from my hand. So I'll tribute Shaddoll Falco and your attacking Goyo King to summon Shaddoll Beast."

"Activate trap, Interdimensional Matter Transporter!" Dean proclaimed, obviously having thought the combo through, "I remove Goyo King from play for the rest of the turn."

"Fair enough, but my Shaddoll Falco is still sent to the graveyard, and when Shaddoll Falco is sent to the graveyard by a card effect, he comes back face down on the field."

"Not for long, Goyo Chaser, destroy Shaddoll Falco!"

"I activate Shaddoll Games to flip over Shaddoll Beast and send Shaddoll Hound to the graveyard. Shaddoll Hound changes Chaser into defense mode, and Beast lets me draw two cards, then discard one of them. I'll discard Shaddoll Dragon (lv4, 1900/0) to destroy a face-down card."

The face-down card I destroyed was Call of the Haunted, which shattered and disappeared.

"It's the end of my turn, so Goyo King comes back to the field. It's all up to you now Ushio." Dean ended his turn with a flourish.

 **Turn 7: Trudge's turn**

 **Yuki 4000; Dean 3950; Trudge 4000;**

"You got lucky, but now you don't have a single face-down card left. This is the end of the line!" Trudge gloated.

"Didn't Dean just say that?" Wade reminded him, his phone now firmly trained on the duel again. "I'm sorry Yuki-sama, I never should have doubted you!"

"Maybe you'll worship me from now on when you see my moves," Trudge mused. "I summon **Phantom King Hydride (lv3, tuner, 1500/300)** to the field. Tuning my level 3 Goyo Defender with my level 3 Phantom King Hydride, I bring about another fearsome Goyo Synchro Warrior to the field, **Goyo Guadian (lv6, 2800/2000)**."

Trudge looked at his field gleefully. He, Ushio Trudge, would be the one to bring down this new champion of Neo Domino City, finally, he would get the recognition and respect he deserved.

"Given her field, you wouldn't be able to cause any damage." Wade pointed out reasonably. Trudge decided to ignore anybody who rained on his parade. The truth is, even if he doesn't win, as long as he did some damage, that'll be enough to make a name for himself and put him on the short list for the next promotion.

"Goyo Chaser, attack!"

"By banishing my Electromagnetic Turtle from the graveyard, I can bring an end to your battle phase." I could let him attack, but I would like my monsters on the field so I could finish the game next turn.

 **Turn 8: Yuki's turn**

 **Yuki 4000; Dean 3950; Trudge 4000;**

"Your driving's gonna be okay?" I asked Chaos skeptically. We have now exited onto the duel runner-only route riding towards the pier. I must admit, the empty roads were very soothing, in reminding me that we were much less likely to die from an unexpected crash.

"Just duel." Chaos responded flatly, using my words against me.

"In that case," I freed my right hand to draw a card. I was finally getting the hang of 'not falling off a moving motorcycle without using your arms', "I'll place one trap card face down and flip Shaddoll Falco face up to bring another **Shaddoll Falco** back onto the field," Not that it matters anymore. "I flip summon Shaddoll Beast to draw two more cards, and discard Effect Veiler(lv1, tuner) from my hand."

"Effect Veiler?" Trudge asked, "That's a great card."

"It is, but it won't be very useful if I end the duel this turn. I banish Shaddoll Hound from my graveyard to summon **White Dragon Wyvernbuster (lv4, 1800/1000)** from my hand, which also brings Black Dragon Collapserpent (lv4, 1700/1000) to my hand."

"I tune my level 2 Shaddoll Falco with my level 4 White Dragon Wyvernbuster to synchro summon **Orient Dragon (lv6, 2300/1000)**. My dragon automatically banishes one synchro monsters on your field, I think your King should go first."

"Discard Effect Veiler," Dean sent his own Effect Veiler into the graveyard, "This would negate your dragon's effect, and he's too weak to do any damage."

"Don't speak so soon. I summon **Summoner Monk (Lv4, 800/1600)** ," The card I've had since my last turn, "To special summon **Raiden, Hand of the Lightsworn (lv4, tuner, 1750/1000)** to the field, so that I could tune my two level 4 monsters to bring forth **Crimson Blader (lv8, 2800/2500)**.

"Yuki-sama on the counter-attack!" Wade zoomed in further onto the duel.

"You have much more devote supporters in the Satellite," Chaos reminded me, as though afraid a single supporter in Domino City would stop me from going back. I responded by hitting him on the head.

"I banish Effect Veiler and Shaddoll Dragon from my graveyard to special summon, **Black Luster Soldier-Envoy of the Beginning (lv8, 3000/2500)**."

Chaos coughed as he choked on the wind gushing into his throat, he almost reached into his own deck to see if his trump card was still there. Of course, this copy of Black Luster Soldier was mine. I had asked Goodwin for another copy of the card as part of my new deck, and he duly obliged the new Domino Champion, probably still believing he could turn me into his puppet like he did Jack.

"That'll be all for now." I decided, now having Orient Dragon, Shaddoll Beast, Black Luster Soldier, Crimson Blader on my side of the field.

"Let's wipe all of monsters out first." I decided as was my habit.

Black Luster Soldier attacked twice, destroying both Goyo King and Goyo Guardian, dealing 200 damage each to Dean and Trudge. Crimson Blader attacked next, destroying Goyo Chaser dealing Dean 900 damage.

"Who should I attack next," I turned my eyes to Trudge. "Shaddoll Beast, attack Trudge directly."

Dean nodded, Trudge understood the signal and flipped over their last trap card, "Pin Point Guard. I use this card to bring back Stygian Street Patrole to the field in defense mode. During this turn, he cannot be destroyed by battle or card effects."

"I'll finish Dean off first then." Trudge's trap card could only defend one player, so Dean's remaining life points (2850) were easily wiped out.

"Your turn." I gestured with a smirk. Trudge had an empty field and only two cards in his hand.

Moreover, given Crimson Blader's effect, he can't summon any level 5 or above monsters this turn. Even I would be in a bind in his shoes.

 **Turn 9: Trudge's turn**

 **Yuki 4000, Speed counter 9; Trudge 4000; Speed counter 11**

"I play Angel Baton!" Trudge played the card as soon as he drew it, "At the cost of 2 speed counters, I draw two cards and discard Speed spell- High Speed Crash."

"Sector Security never gives up, I'll give you that much." Chaos admitted. "Much more endearing now that we're about to win."

"You know Yuki," Trudge ignored Chaos' jab, he looked at his hand and gloated. Actually gloated. "You've played an admirable duel, one might even say that not all of your duels in Neo Domino had been staged. But you can never escape the clutches of justice! You've never played a turbo duel in your life, you don't have a single speed spell in your deck, and that's going to cost you!"

"I activate, Synchro Defuse! At the cost of a measly 2 speed counters, I can take control of one of your synchro monsters, so I'll take Crimson Blader!"

That's a really good card, I made a mental note to add it to my deck if I ever turbo duel, then immediately scratched the idea out from my head. Victory in a children's card game might be difficult if I lost half of my head in a crash.

"That won't make a difference to the game, you're still losing next turn." Wade commented.

"Not unless I play this, Speed spell- Brain Control. By removing 6 more speed counters, I can take any of your monsters I like, so come to me, Black Luster Soldier!"

My warrior struggled in vain as he was dragged to the opposing side, I thought I could see the resistance in every part of his body language.

"Now with your Black Luster Soldier and your Crimson Warrior, I can defeat you this turn!"

"Black Luster Soldier can attack twice, so that's 800 plus 700 plus, uh, 2800," Chaos counted out loud,

"That Is over 4000."

"Remind me to add you to our grade 4 math class." I rolled my eyes. "After I win this duel."

"Black Luster Soldier, attack!" Trudge commanded, after about a three second delay, my Black Luster Soldier moved towards my side of the field, charging towards Shaddoll Beast."

"Activate trap, Purushaddoll Aeon. This trap increases my Shaddoll Beast's attack by 1000 to 3200, making it the most powerful monster on the field this turn."

Trudge's face twisted it anger.

"Face it, there's nothing more you can do." I smirked, though the victory was not at all a surprise, I enjoyed it nonetheless, "You have nothing in your hand, nothing on the field and nothing in your graveyard that you can use."

"End turn." The voice that sounded oddly like Kaiba's computer announced again. I think it's safe to assume Trudge didn't press it by accident.

 **Turn 10, Yuki Turn**

 **Yuki 4000, Trudge 4000**

"Black Luster Soldier, finish the game." I commanded as my monsters returned to me. The warrior dove forward eagerly, along with the rest of my monsters, quickly dropping Trudge's life point to 0 and his duel runner spun out of control towards the side of the road.

"Hurray!" Wade cheered.

"You can stand to look a little less excited you know," Dean commented, but leaned towards him to watch the replay of the duel.

* * *

"Perhaps there's something _I_ can do."

I looked up in alarm. I have largely neglected my environment during the duel, it's not like I'd recognize where we were going anyways. Now I found myself on top of the pier across from the Satellite. In the anime, this is where Goodwin had convinced Yusei to 'fight for the greater good' and defeat the Evil of the Dark Signers. I don't think he would believe me to be as gullible.

Goodwin stood at the side of the pier waiting. It wasn't hard to anticipate our destination given his surveillance of the city.

"Let me handle this," I told Chaos as he slowed down, "And don't have any more great plans."

"I'm a simple man, Yuki, but even I'm beginning to have doubts. I find it difficult to believe your mark was not activated even in the challenging duel you just had."

"Psh," I replied immaturely.

"Why would you run if you were the real Signer? I would have to let you go to the Satellite to defeat the Dark Signers in due time." Goodwin ignored me and continued.

Actually, Goodwin probably wouldn't have let me leave the Satellite at all if Yusei could defeat the Dark Signers in a children's card game, which Yusei could, because he's Yusei. But that'a moot now, so I didn't bother debating the point.

"Perhaps I might be interest you in another game, against me this time." Goodwin stood beside the dock overlooking the ocean. "If you win, only your friend dies. If you lose and still doesn't have your mark, I would have no more use for you."

My brain raced to find the alternative that would keep Chaos alive.

"You have few options here, unless, of course," He gestured to the ocean behind him, "You would like to repeat the actions of the other Satellite who rode into the ocean 10 years ago?"

"I can get you the fifth Signer, as long as you let him go." I trained my eyes on him. "As you may have suspected by now, that's not me."

Goodwin hesitated and so lost the time to respond.

"You don't need to do that, just hold on tight!" Chaos zoomed past Goodwin towards the ocean.

"I'm never going along with your great plans again!" I yelped, instinctively clutching onto him as Chaos' duel runner left land.

Goodwin looked on with his mouth agape, not believing somebody was actually repeating his famously unsuccessful feat.

A dragon dove down from the clouds to grasp me in its talons.

No, that's not a figure of speech. A dragon, previously hiding between the clouds, dove down and caught Chaos and I with its claws. Its red-headed rider leaned her head over the wings.

"Hey Yuki, what's up?" Akiza smiled down at me.

* * *

"See, I told you you'd get crushed." Wade commented as he uploaded the duel onto Sector Security's internal server.

"Yeah, but I got crushed by _Yuki Tono,_ it was amazing!They're gonna be so jealous. _"_ Dean smirked, "I can't believe you didn't get in on the action!"

"I'll never stand in her way," Wade replied indignantly, while mentally kicking himself for missing the chance of having the best duel of his life

"I hope Ushio feels the same way." Dean looked over towards Trudge, who was taking out his frustration on a nearby garbage can.

"He doesn't." Wade replied flatly. "Forget about it, he's always had his head stuck you-know-where. You know, I wonder if I would get a change to duel Yuki if I went to the Satellite."

"To the Satellite!" Trudge must have overheard the last part of that sentence. "That's right! Then I can get my rematch."

"Forget it buddy," Dean patted him on the shoulder, "We still have the Director to answer to, remember?"

* * *

 **A/N:** I really wanted to post this on March 4th, which was the one year anniversary for this story. :(

I probably could have split this chapter into two, but I wanted to post something longer as we hit the one-year mark- I can't believe I've been writing this thing for the past year.

Special thanks to DarkWarriorIncarnate for helping me write the duel.


	44. Surprise

**Disclaimer:** I do not own YGO 5Ds

* * *

I swear I didn't breathe until my feet hit solid ground again. Never mind the flock of helicopters and schools of ships now coming towards the Satellite, I was just relieved I didn't fall to my death! Yay! Forget the hundreds of Sector agents on our tail, forget the 3000 sector security agents still in Domino City*, I'm alive!

Akiza immediately summoned 3 copies of Rose Tentacles. The duel monsters took root on Satellite shore and spewed seeds at the invaders like a giant game of plants versus zombies. Unlike the game though, Satellites has 200 km of shoreline, and Akiza couldn't summon more than five monsters at a time. Nonetheless, she seems to have things under control for now, Blue Rose Dragon flapped a wing to wave goodbye, then shot down another helicopter. That looks like so much fun!

"You're back!" Galen had been waiting by the shore. He gave me a quick hug and let me go just as quickly, "So what's the plan? I have just over a hundred people so I can't hold them off for long."

"You shouldn't have to," I looked on the swarm of sector agents smugly, "Given Rex a call, let him know that we have the Momentum and it's now functional. The threat should be enough to keep all Sector Security out of Domino City indefinitely." People are generally very cautious about attacks when it may lead to mutually assured destruction.

"Sure…" Galen fell in step behind me and as I walked towards our temporary underground headquarter near the dock. Because I refuse to ride Chaos' duel runner again, he was forced to walk behind us, pushing his duel runner.

"Goodwin can't be sure whether taking over the Satellite would force me to detonate the Momentum," I explained, seeing that Galen was not entirely convinced. "There're plenty of people who would rather die than be captured by Sector Security. He doesn't know if I'm one of them, and he doesn't know if I would bring the entire city down with me if it happens."

"Is that something you would do?" Chaos interrupted alarmed.

"Probably not," I admitted, "But I guess nobody really knows until it happens. That's the beauty of it. I don't know, so neither does he. So he's not going to risk it now that he thinks he has the upper hand." And that's why every country wants nuclear weapons.

"That is… Horrifying." Galen breathed out deeply, "And this is somehow implicitly understood between the two of you?"

"I assume so," I did assume Goodwin was smart enough to understand blatant threats of mutual destruction, "If not, we'll make enough explosions to remind him."

"Were you always this cynical or this is Neo Domino talking?" Galen teased, trying to sound lighthearted.

"Nope, this is all me." I replied with a laugh, "Well, Satellite didn't help."

"Then it's a good thing we got you a surprise," He grinned. I could see his dimples whenever he smiles, which made him look even younger than his sixteen-years.

"Surprise?" I asked, amused. The last time I came back from Domino, they surprised me with a hole in my roof.

"Don't worry, you'll love it." Chaos replied confidently.

X

I stepped into our temporary underground hideout with Galen's hands around my eyes, I honestly didn't feel good about this.

"Well? What do you think?" He let go of my eyes and handed me a piece of paper about 3 inches by 3 inches. "Teddy drew it on the tablet and we printed it out. What do you think?"

I said hi to Felice and Cyril in the room, then looked down at the paper in my hand.

I couldn't help gasped when I saw it, it was a portrait, of me! I looked a little older in the picture, though age was hardly the focus. I looked wise and benevolent and powerful! Like I could save or destroy the world at will, but just happened to let it survive. Behind me was the Daedalus Bridge, still half complete, with the wreckage of the Satellite on one side and Neo Domino City on the other. The entire thing was tastefully drawn in varying shades of green, so my radioactive hair fit in perfectly. There was a double border, decorated with two 'X's at each corner. I ran my fingers along the paper and felt the lines making up the picture are actually slightly elevated from the page.

"I love it!" I admitted. While I doubt this had been the best use of our time and resources, I do like the drawing and appreciate the gesture.

"You do?" Felice asked skeptically.

I nodded, no doubt looking appeased. "It's really nice." Weird though, if Teddy drew it, why did it have Chaos' signature underneath?

"Flip it over," Chaos urged with a grin and I complied.

The back was decorated with the same border. In the middle were two Red-Eyes Black Dragons, drawn in shades of green, posed with fire coming out of their mouths. The background was the Dragon Shrine field spell. The poor choice of color scheme took nothing from the image itself and the dragons somehow managed to look fearsome and loyal at the same time.

"This is actually really good," I said sincerely. The drawing did look amazing, though things are beginning to feel a little off. For example, why would they print this picture on the back of the other one?

"I knew you'd like it!" Cyril said cheerfully. "We have more!"

He handed me four more pieces of similarly-sized paper in red, orange, yellow and blue respectively. The front side was all the same, the same drawing of me in front of the Daedalus Bridge, just in different colors. My heart sank a little, beginning to realize what I was actually given. I flipped them over, unsurprisingly, the back had different duel monsters.

The blue one had what was obviously a reprint of Chaos' Black Luster Soldier, complete with his blood stain on the monster's armor. The corners are each marked with an 'L'.

The yellow one had Lightsworn monsters drawn in the foreground. There is a large conspicuous empty space in the back. The double borders had an 'X' at each corner.

"I don't have any of the extra deck monsters yet," Felice explained, "Once I do, I'll get Teddy to draw them in."

"I got Michael, the Arch Lightsworn (lv7, 2600/2000) from Goodwin, I'll give it to you later."

"Cool! Then I can add him to the picture!" Felice said excitedly. "All I need now is Justice Dragon!"

"No. No you cannot." I replied, now having a pretty good idea what I was actually looking at.

As I expected, the orange piece of paper had Yusei's Stardust Dragon with a V at each corner, and the red one had Cyril's Injection Fairy Lily with an 'I' at the corners.

"Galen bet all our money on the Fortune Cup and we were out of cash," Cyril explained, having noticed the twisted expression I had.

"Yuki asked me to!" Galen defended himself.

"So we printed these IOUs and handed them out to our employees instead." Cyril ignored him and continued.

"They can be traded for anything we sell in our stores, so it's not like this is a rip-off," Chaos said a little defensively, misinterpreting the look on my face. "It's not like we're giving people scraps of paper for work they did."

I slapped my face into my hand. "You did _NOT_ just issue currency while I was in Domino!" I honestly would have preferred coming back to a hole in my roof.

"Currency? What are you talking about?" Felice denied immediately, "We didn't print money! This is just something we printed that lets people trade for stuff. It's making life easier for everybody because they don't have to barter with actual goods anymore."

"So instead, these IOUs are being traded for goods and services." I said through clenched teeth.

Felice nodded slowly as the realization hit her.

"And what exactly do you think currency is?" I continued, letting my sarcasm drip into every word.

"I don't know, but it definitely shouldn't have my signature on it." Chaos said reasonably.

"It shouldn't," I agreed, "Except that it now does."

"Hey, we left the biggest bills for you to decide on." Cyril tried to cheer me up, "Do you want Six Samurais or Shaddolls on the back?"

"I guess Shaddoll Win- Wait, no, that's not the point!"

My mind blanked for a second, not sure how to react past the initial wtf phase. Issuing your own currency is just not something sane people consider regularly. Though I guess it might be useful in the Satellite, I mean there has to be a reason every country has their own currency. Right? ... I wonder what that reason is...

"Do you know how messed up this could become?" I demanded. I never went into economics, or really understood it, but routine exposure to the internet did give me an idea of what could go very wrong.

"What are you talking about?" Felice raised an eyebrow, "The Satellite needs money and so do we. What's the problem?"

"Let's say that I were, I don't know, Rex Goodwin," I suggested with a facetious smile, "And I know the Zephyrs don't have a lot of products in the warehouse. So I collect a bunch of the money you issued, and try to cash them all in at once, knowing you don't have enough products in stock. When you can't, everybody in the Satellite would become suspicious and they would all try to cash in too and then the reputation you've built in the Satellite collapse overnight."

Truth is, there's probably many other ideas that I can't even think up because I never understood monetary policy.

"Do you want us to take it back?" Cyril asked, slightly discouraged.

I debated my options. I _could_ take the money back and pretend like it never happened. It would be safer, but at the same time, we'd lose a lot of credit with the public to retract our policies this quickly. On the other hand, our currency would just give Goodwin one more weapon to use against me, which he would when he finds out we stole the Momentum.

On the other, other hand, I look really pretty in that picture.

"Yes and no. We'll issue replace this with new bills not linked to any solid products." There're probably a number other ways this could still backfire, but a relatively independent economic system might be useful for what I have planned next...

"Whatever you want." Chaos had given up trying to understand what was going on about three minutes ago, "What excuse do you want to use?"

"I don't like the design." I supplied immediately, and it was true. "I mean drawings are good, but the designs are completely inappropriate and even the shape's wrong, it's pretty much a square."

"Why can't it be a square?" Cyril asked and I didn't have an answer.

"Anyway, we're not going to have duel monsters on our money." I changed the subject.

"What do you have against duel monsters?" Felice grumbled as she flipped through my side deck, picking out Vigil, Rock star of the Burning Abyss and adding it to her own deck.

"The money we issue is a direct representation of _us_ ," I explained, I actually had a good reason this time, "Every time somebody uses money, they are reminded of us. So the symbols we use should bring about a sense of unity and shared identity. There're basically two reasons to put something on currency, either it helps to build a sense of belonging to the Zephyrs, or we're trying to get people to identify with whatever it is we're putting on the currency. So we're not printing duel monsters, and we're certainly not putting a picture of the Daedalus Bridge."

"What's wrong with the Bridge?" Chaos asked, "It's the first thing people think of, if they think about the Satellite at all. It represents hope for this City."

"The future of this city will _not_ be represented by the hope to leave it," I snickered.

Currency is a representation of the State and Sovereignty, 'leaving the Satellite' should not be the first thing people associate the Satellite with. Not _our_ Satellite at least. It's bad for morale.

"You didn't mention getting rid of your own picture," Felice noted with a coy smile, I coughed and looked away, feeling a blush creeping up my cheeks. I reached a hand up to my face, yep, my face was definitely heating up. I will succumb to pride once in a while. Plus, it _is_ a really nice picture.

"We can keep your portrait," Chaos ruffled my hair and pulled his hand away before I could bite him, "What else do you want on there?"

"I don't know," I admitted, "Like the Development, the Pier, the roads we built, even the Momentum. Be creative."

X

"I guess the good news bit didn't go so well, huh?" Galen coughed, a little embarrassed.

" _That_ was the good news?" I asked shakily, flicking the rainbow-colored pieces of paper in my hand, "Is there a bad news bit?"

"Well, do you remember how you told me that you don't want anybody to get you from Neo Domino until we get the Momentum up and running in the Satellite?" Galen took a step back at the twisted look on my face.

" _Yes?_ " I scrunched up the money in my fist.

Galen flinched. "Well, technically, the Momentum _is_ running fine. "

I growled.

"We were worried you wouldn't be safe in Neo Domino," Cyril defended, "I mean we were also worried that if you spent too much time in Domino, you wouldn't want to come back, but mostly the first thing. Plus, it's not that a big deal, I mean, the Momentum's working fine."

" _Get to the point."_ I managed through clenched teeth.

"We've turned the Momentum up as high as it'll go," Galen explained, "But it'll still take years to drain the Netherworld monster dry. In other words, there's no way to make it in time for the Battle between Light and Darkness."

My original plan was to destroy the Netherworld monster by absorbing all its energy using the Momentum. According to Roman, the monster itself is made entirely of energy, so when it's used up, it's gone. This way, we can avoid the final duels between Signers and Dark Signer.

"That's fine. Plans change. Does this machine still take energy from the Ruler of the Netherworld and Crimson Dragon?" I wasn't as upset as I thought I would be. With all the supernatural powers lurking about, I didn't feel confident enough to destroy the Crimson Dragon, and I certainly wasn't going to destroy the Ruler of the Netherworld alone.

"Yeah," Galen replied, "You said that's what you wanted. To avoid this world being overwhelmed with dark energy, right?"

"Right."

Of course, that was complete BS. The whole 'dark energy overwhelming this dimension' thing I mean.

I made it up.

When I realized these 'gods' were made of energy, my initial reaction was to use the Momentum to destroy Ruler of the Netherworld like the Crimson Dragon had asked me to.

Then I actually put some thought into it.

I _could_ completely drain the Netherworld monster of course. That way, I didn't need to defeat any Dark Signers at all, but frankly, I'd rather keep that as a very, very last resort.

In the order of last resorts, it goes:

Defeating Dark Signers in a children's card game;  
Dueling all Dark Signers with (inherently crappy) Exodia decks;  
Placing a bounty on all Dark Signers to be defeated by dueling or otherwise;  
Murder all Dark Signers and hope for less competent replacements; place my last hopes in Yusei;  
Then drain the Netherworld monster completely thereby killing it, if all else fails.

You see, maintenance is all about balance. More specifically, maintaining this world is about not having ridiculously powerful monsters run unchecked when the human race cannot yet begin to comprehend its powers.

There's the Ruler of the Netherworld of course, who has powers beyond what we can yet understand.

But there's also the Crimson Dragon, which is equally or arguably more powerful. And it is kept in check by Ruler of the Netherworld...

You see where I'm getting at.

If the Demon dies, the dragon has nothing more to rein it in, nothing more for which it would require human assistance. It doesn't matter if the dragon is 'supposed to be' good, or even if it _is_ Good, a power disequilibrium like that, for millennia to come, is beyond dangerous, it's suicidal. For all we know, the lizard is just a hiccup away from believing the Kuribohs should rule the world. It may not, sure, but the whimsy of a creature we cannot understand is a lot on which to bet the future of our species.

So either both gods live, or both die.

It also doesn't help that I have constantly wondered if the Crimson Dragon had killed me in my previous world. I mean, it would just be too much of a coincidence for the Dragon to choose a mortal of its liking to bring into the YGO world, and then that mortal happens to die of unnatural causes.

Of course I can't say that. I don't know the extent of the powers of the Crimson Dragon, or even if it was omniscient. So I made up the BS about negative energy. I might as well have said the Netherworld demon was messing up my chi.

"So, what are we going to do?" Cyril asked, bringing me back from my reverie, "If we can't destroy the Netherworld monster?"

"We'll have to defeat the Dark Signers one-by-one," I admitted grudgingly.

"Kessler said the Netherworld monster needs at least one Dark Signer in this world to stay here. If you can save Vincent like you did for Kessler, we can take the rest out the old-fashioned way." Felice offered cheerfully.

"Maybe try not to kill Ara," Chaos added, annoyed at Felice's casual violent streak. "She was one of us too, remember?"

None of them seemed remotely concerned what would happened to the rest of the Dark Signers. Then again, I shouldn't judge. I've been mulling over how to destroy the gods.

* * *

Inside the Neo Domino hospital, Jack Atlas had had enough lying in around in bed.

"Did you see that?" He asked Carly excitedly as he finished watching the duel for the third time in a row.

"Yes Jack. I did. I watched it before I came over to show it to you. Then I watched it with you every time you watched it." Carly rolled her eyes, trying to push Jack back onto the hospital bed. "I just thought I'd bring you something so you didn't get bored in the hospital." And didn't expect him to get this worked up over a game Yuki had with Sector Security.

"Are you kidding, that was the most powerful deck I've ever seen!" Jack flipped shut Carly's laptop with a click, "She didn't use a single speed spell in that duel and she still won. If this is how far Tono had gotten, I wonder how powerful Yusei is right now."

"I'm sure you can defeat them after you get better," Carly comforted him, "And you'll be my champion no matter what, Jack."

"Thanks Carly," Jack replied uncomfortably, not really sure if he cared at all but still trying not to hurt her feelings, "But I want to be _the_ Champion. Only then would I deserve to be yours."

"Oh Jack!" Carly gushed.

 _Darn it, he might have gone too far with that line._

* * *

The newly minted Dark Signer Greiger torn through Satellite roads, weaving in and out of traffic on his black duel runner until other cars on the road was a blur. He couldn't contain his excitement in facing the Signers and get his just revenge against all those who stole his family away.

His runner glided through the new smooth petroleum roads, jealousy welled up inside him. All along the road, shops were being opened and filled with satellites, those who had money in their pockets for the first time in a decade (that's when currency got phased out) eager to purchase necessities of life they hadn't seen in since Zero Reverse. The shop owners, the more daring of the satellite population, looked much like dogs with a bone, ecstatic over what they have and terrified each shadow would come and steal it away. The roads themselves were being filled with cars and duel runners, the distant humming of machinery signaled the highly profitable electronics churned out along the shores, to be shipped into the world and bring more products into shops in the city. The pedestrians had the look of hopeful determination only seen on those seeing their dreams within reach and working toward them. It was everything he had dreamt of for his village, now he sees it here, after everybody he ever cared about is dead.

Looking back, Greiger could honestly say that he had done everything he could for his family and his village. Yet he still failed, while a kidnapper and liar flourished in the Satellite. Now he could go and make thing right, there's no way somebody who would kidnap children could be trusted to run a city.

He watched with glee as he left other drivers in the dust, watching as they scramble and struggle to get out of his way.

"Eeeoooeeoooeeeooo."

Greiger heard the sirens from the Zephyrs security team and sped up. Those Satellite scum must have caught on to him.

"Would the black duel runner please pull over?"

Greiger ignored the voice behind him and floored the gas.

"The rider in the brown crop top! This is Zephyrs security, please pull over at the side of the road!"

At the second prompt from the Zephyrs security team, Greiger noticed the cars in front of him slowing down and moving towards the side of the road, leaving the road clear. While the Zephyr runners did not yet seem to be catching up, he could see more security runners up ahead, waiting to crowd him off the road. Greiger was forced to slow down as well.

"Good morning, sir," The officer saluted, "Do you have a license and registration within the Satellite?"

Greiger looked at him as though he just tried to perform a synchro summon without a tuner monster.

The officer was obviously used to the confusion and nodded briefly, "I pulled you over because you were driving 250 in a 30 road." He paused, realizing Greiger didn't understood a word he just said. "We have speed limits in the Satellite, motorized vehicles cannot drive faster than 30 miles/hr."

"30 miles per hour?" Greiger repeated, unable to help himself "30 miles per hour?"

"That's roughly 45km/hr," The officer clarified helpfully.

Greiger pulled out a special permit he received from Rex Goodwin when he was still working for that man. "Official Neo Domino business, get out of my way."

"I'm sorry sir, I'm afraid the Satellite is now private property, so permits from Neo Domino don't apply here."The officer explained, not the first time judging by his tone"We have a lot of new drivers." And that's why he was able to leave them all in the dust, Greiger realized.

"Also turbo dueling on the road is strictly prohibited." He ignored Greiger's gasp and continued, "Your duel runner is not yet registered with the Satellite, so I will register it now. You will get 1 demerit point for this first speeding ticket, and 3 points thereafter. Your temporary license..."

He just went on, and on and on. Greiger stared at his lips move with awe, how did the Satellite go from a handful of duel runners to... This? Whatever this is.

Having stayed in the middle of nowhere for most of his life, Greiger struggles to recognize modern civilization, its setbacks and all.

* * *

Lazar shuddered, hesitating in front of Goodwin's door, finally working himself up to go inside. A chair smashed against the wall beside him as he opened the door, Lazar flinched again.

"Uh-Director Goodwin, sir," Lazar whimpered. Goodwin had been like this since Tono escaped to the Satellite. Lazar really didn't want to give him more bad news right now, but it doesn't look like he has a choice. "The Satellite sent a message for you."

"Well?" Goodwin turned around, annoyed.

"The kid on the line said they have the Momentum up and running already, and if we don't withdraw our troops from the Satellite, they can't promise what they'll do." Lazar took a deep breath and said everything as quickly as possible, hoping to get out of the room before Goodwin explodes.

"You know," Rex Goodwin mused, "I do wonder if I should have taken your advice on Yuki Tono."

He was losing control, Rex knew, what he threw was nothing short of a temper tantrum. Yuki's escape had stirred up old memories he would rather bury. What are the chances that someone would again attempt to cross the divide between Satellite and Neo Domino City. And how fitting that they only succeeded with help from the god he hopes to tame*. It felt like an old ghost being dug up and flayed back to death.

Then there's the issue of her betrayal. It's not fair to say that he trusted Tono, but he was definitely restrained. When she escaped, her entire stay was proven to be nothing more than a front to steal the Momentum. Any control he had thought he had was an illusion, and the Fortune Cup Tournament he orchestrated became nothing more than a farce. This whole time, she had been playing him for a fool.

"And our troops?" Lazar prompted carefully.

"Vice Director Lazar, on my orders, withdraw our troops from the Satellite." Goodwin commanded shortly. He was fairly sure the Zephyrs would not use the Momentum. But _fairly_ is not good enough. He wasn't going to risk his life on those odds, however slim they may be. And therein lies the power of the Momentum, a deterrent against any immediate and definitive military action.

"Y-yes, sir." Lazar replied shakily, cowering at the quiet fury burning behind Goodwin's eyes.

"Increase tariffs, I mean taxes," Goodwin corrected himself, "On all imports to the Satellite to 100%, and all exports to 200%." Because round numbers are convenient.

"Of course, right away, Director." Lazar agreed, glad at least the anger wasn't directed towards him.

"And tell our plants in the Satellite to be liberal with the rations this month." Goodwin said after a pause, quietly plotting his revenge. Those satellites need to learn their place, there are a million and one ways he could remind them of that.

"Uh-" Lazar thought he must have misheard, " _Increase_ food distribution in the Satellite?"

"Yes, and let's hold imports of all edible products into Satellite."

"B-but sir?" Lazar stuttered, "but, you can possibly! Isn't that going too far, even for the Satellite?" Satellite only had two sources of food, Neo Domino plants and imports. Without the latter, everyone who doesn't have a job at a City plant would starve.

"Don't be ridiculous, Vice Director Lazar," Goodwin's gleeful smile sent a chill down Lazar's spine, "Due to unscrupulous private purchases from the Satellite, there has been increasing reports of food poisoning and general safety concerns in the Satellite, prompting this inspection after public request. We will temporarily suspend all imports for the next two weeks, and review the results at that time."

Lazar nodded mutely. Two weeks, that's how long the average human can survive without food.

"And take a look at the new money the Zephyrs issued," Goodwin was at least experienced enough to recognize these IOUs for what they are, "I want a prototype on my desk by next week."

"Of course Director," Lazar replied smoothly, having collected himself, "You'll get it in three days." He was halfway through the forgeries anyway.

Not taking military actions doesn't mean there's nothing he could do, far from it. The Satellite would soon learn the consequences of angering Rex Goodwin.

* * *

* As mentioned earlier, there's one to two hundred thousand people in Neo Domino. Normally, the police force is about 1% of the population, taking into account some minimal security maintenance in the Satellite, I set the Domino Sector Security at 3000 people.

*Everybody in the show seems to think Akiza's mark and her psychic powers are related for some reason, so that's what Goodwin thinks too. And of course, Goodwin wants to harness the powers of both Ruler of the Netherworld and the Crimson Dragon.

 **A/N:** It amuses me to think of turbo duels vs normal roads with speed limits.

 **A/N 2:** So yeah, the 'surprise' is currency in the Satellite. In case it's not obvious yet, the Zephyrs are slowly evolving into a political faction :D And I did mention the Netherworld monster wouldn't be destroyed by the Momentum didn't I？


	45. Karma

**A/N:** Minor changes had been made to earlier content to correct some oversight, shouldn't affect anything. I wrote this chapter specifically to include any adjustments from previous chapters. That being said, if you're reading this consecutively, it may seem a little repetitive. I will edit out the relevant content in a couple of days.

* * *

Devack's challenge outside woke me from my reverie. Time to deal with the much simpler problem of progressively weakening an evil god until it it tame enough to be used as an energy source for my construction plans. Compared to what needs to happen after the Dark Signer thing's done, this is a piece of cake.

Oh well, how bad can it be?I mused rhetorically. All we're doing is to redesign the human civilization to once again revolve around agriculture (the way it was meant to exist), with people who does not yet understand the concept of money. What could possibly go wrong?

"Sup!" I waved cheerfully at Devak, glad to relax with a children's card game. Chaos, Felice, Kalin and Yusei followed me outside, Cyril and Galen stayed back because somebody had to do the real work around here.

"Greetings, Signer." Devak stepped off of this own duel runner to stand before me. An aura of darkness seemed to radiate off of him as he challenged me to a duel that he honestly believes would decide the course of humanity.

 _Yawn._

Let's be real, he's running a Earthbound Immortal deck with a single immortal, he shouldn't be able to defeat a paper bag without major help from the Ruler of the Netherworld. Well, his god can only do so much.

"Greetings, Dark Signer," I mirrored his words mockingly, "We shall enter into a duel of Light and Darkness, where I shall slaughter you, and if you cooperate, we might even keep you alive in the end, how's that?"

"You ridicule the power of the Shadows?" He gnarled.

"It picked you as its envoy, didn't it?" I taunted. "Talk's cheap, let's just start the game so I could prove my point."

"Your point?" Devack repeated suspiciously.

"That Dark Signers can be converted back to normal with a children's card game without being killed," I elaborated.

Felice has been planning on how to get Vincent back now that he's a Dark Signer, her ideas so far include but are not limited to breaking all of his limbs, and getting him prosthetics when he's sane again... So I thought we'd probably need a backup plan. Plus, with all the information I conveniently forgot to reveal, I need the brownie points.

Also I'd like Vincent and Ara alive.

"As you wish," Devak replied coolly, "I shall reveal to you the Darkness and all its terrors."

* * *

"Uh-huh." I rolled my eyes, "You're one to talk, a child defeated you at a children's card game."

Devak looked understandably confused. I was talking about the duel he had with Leo in the original anime, which I guess wouldn't happen anymore.

"As a Signer who hasn't even embraced her powers yet, you don't stand a chance against my Earthbound Immortal!" Devack seemed to have ignored my interjections and continue his own speech.

"Cusillu (lv10, 2800/2400), that monkey thing, right?" I replied dismissively. I gestured vaguely for him to make his move before he physically exploded from anger.

 **Turn 1, Devack's turn; Devack 4000, Yuki 4000**

"My immortal will rip you to shreds." Devack promised. "I summon, **Fighter Ape (lv4, 1900/1200)** , in attack mode. I place one card face down and end my turn."

 **Turn 2, Yuki's Turn; Devack 4000, Yuki 4000**

"I'll activate Swords of Revealing Light, place two cards face down. That should be more than enough." I said carelessly.

"You're already buying time on your first turn? That measly card won't be enough to prolong your time in this world."

"Actually, I'm not going to attack while Swords of Revealing Light is on the field, so you have three turns to summon your immortal, should be enough." That way, he's much less likely to lose all his life points and die.

"You undermine the power of my deck and the powers my deck grants me," Devack responded evenly, "Unlike you Signers, I duel _with_ my monsters, not using them. With their help, I cannot lose!"

What he said just sounded so much like the 'heart of the cards' stuff I burst out laughing.

"Your name sounds like D-bag, you know that?" I glossed over the mental detour with another laugh, completely changing the topic. The harsh lines on Devack's face deepened with my words. I chuckled apologetically. It does though... "Whatever, just summon your immortal so I can destroy it."

* * *

Off the field, nobody was really paying us any attention.

"Is there a Shadow Duel going on?" Akiza's feathered dragon swooped down as she leapt off the dragon, her jacket bellowing out behind her. Akiza was secretly pleased- she's been practicing that entrance for a while. It took a while to get her coat flowing just right. Blue Rose Dragon (lv4, 1600/1000) nuzzled against her hand and disappeared into its card.

"Yuki's dueling a Dark Signer, but I don't feel anything." Yusei looked down on his arm, where the tattoo of the tail of the Crimson Dragon remains dormant, "My mark has always lit up between the battle of a Signer and a Dark Signer."

"Are you supposed to feel anything?" Felice asked nonchalantly, "Maybe it's because Yuki doesn't have one of your marks yet. Or maybe your marks ran out of juice."

"I didn't feel anything when Yuki dueled Kalin either," Akiza recalled, "It felt completely different from when you and Jack were dueling, I didn't think anything of it at the time..."

Yusei looked to Kalin for confirmation, the latter looked uncomfortably away.

"I sensed no energy from her during the duel," Kalin kept his eyes down to avoid looking at his friend, "At the time, I attributed the anomaly to an inactivated mark."

"It's possible," Yusei admitted. The last time there was a 'Battle between Light and Dark' was around the time written language was invented, so it's not like anybody really knew what was supposed to happen. Still, his instincts screamed otherwise.

X

"A Shadow Duel?" Jack looked up from his new duel runner, the one unfortunately named Wheel of Fortunes*. "Odd, I don't sense another Signer in the game."

"Jack, I got permission from Director Goodwin for you to enter the Satellite!" Mina burst through the door, annoyed to see Carly sitting by her computer at the side of the garage.

"The King Returns... The Return of the King," Carly glanced up to acknowledge Mina's entrance, still typing on her computer, "No, no, that's too cliched for tomorrow's headline. Riding into Satellite? Too simple. The One Thing About Jack Atlas You Must Know? Click bait, people will hate me. Ugh, why is this so hard?"

X

"The first battle of many," Rex Goodwin mused from his position on top of the Neo Domino Towers. So those satellites didn't need any nudging from Neo Domino to battle the Dark Signers, probably out of 'the goodness of their hearts'. In other words, a woefully misplaced hero-complex. Well, the upcoming famine in the Satellite shouldn't hurt.

X

"So it begins," Greiger stepped on the gas, then remembered his speeding ticket. Not wanting to be deterred by Security again, he slowed down to 30 miles per hour. He had business to attend to, he didn't have time to be detained by these mortals. He had learned alot since he left the village, from both Goodwins and Tono, now it's time to put that to use. "I should be in time, can't let Devack have all the fun." And why should he deny himself the pleasure of victory? Or the pleasure of destruction? He has need for self restraint- he has nothing left to lose.

* * *

 **Turn 3, Devack's turn; Devack 4000, Yuki 4000**

"Yet another mortal who treat this gladiator sport like a game, I expected more from a Signer. Very well, if you insist on aiding in your own demise, I shall oblige you." Devack drew, "I summon the **Dark Tuner Dark Ape (lv-3, 0/0)** , and activate the spell Dark Wave to change my Fighter Ape's level into -4. I tune my level 4 Fighter Ape with my level 3 Dark Tuner Dark Ape. When the Shadows are devoured by even darker Shadows, the curtain pulls back to reveal a world without Light."

I didn't interrupt him with a smart alec remark like I usually do. Devack looked devout, almost Divine, and I was awed, not by his 'god' but by his reverence and passion. He really believes in this, whatever this is.

"Come forth, **Zeman the Ape King (lv7, 2500/1800)**."

A human-looking creature in a dark green cloak rose from the battle field, it turned back and bowed towards Devack, its face twisting into what I would imagine was a smile, before facing me again, standing still among the confines of Swords of Revealing Light.

"Welcome, my friend," Devack nodded, "Thank you for joining me in this battle. We shall share in the power of the minus curse to defeat the Signers! Our magic shall turn everything into its opposite. Left will be right, up will be down. So finally, the wrongs shall be right again! Our combined powers would restore this world into how it was meant to be!"

The monkey chirped in response. (do monkeys chirp? It wasn't quite a screech, so I'll call it a chirp...)

"A world that's meant to be?" Yusei asked curiously.

"One where duel monsters no longer need to obey the will of their human masters, or be imprisoned in the Shadow Realm. But rather are free to roam the earth, fighting for their own advancements rather than enjoyment of mortals. The way this world is meant to be! The human kind were never meant to rule this world, nor are we deserving of it! Not while duel monsters are trapped in the Shadow Realm, being used as weapons for our infighting! When my magic finally takes hold of this world, duel monsters will icbbe again reign!" Devack said, ecstatic.

"Why should duel monsters be trapped in the Shadow Realm, forced to do biddings of their unknown masters in brutal gladiator fights? What right do we have to command them and herd them into battle?"

As enticing as that sounds... "As a human, I have to say, that might not be a good idea." I interjected, it doesn't take a genius to figure out roaming Blue Eyes White Dragons are not good for the well-being of the human race.

But I'm not human, am I? To me, the characters in this world are no more or less real than the duel monsters. I could just as well have ended up as a duel monster, then I would be fighting for Devack's cause, possibly more passionately than I fight for the Satellite.

I mean, everything he said makes sense, if you don't look at it from the perspective of a human. It's a disconcerting idea but I couldn't deny the truth in it.

"I set one card face down and end my turn." Devack ignored me and finished his turn.

 **Turn 4, Yuki's Turn; Devack 4000, Yuki 4000**

"Well, there's not much I can do. I told you I wouldn't attack, so I'll just set one card facedown and end my turn." I said lazily, distracted. A Dark Synchro monster, powerful though it is, wouldn't really save him. "Just summon your immortal, 'kay?"

"As you wish." Devack replied. "I activate my face down card, "Fires of Doomsday, summoning two **Doomsday Tokens (lv2, 0/0)** to the field."

"Yay! Immortal! Finally." I cheered sarcastically, "Let's get this over with."

"It's unbecoming for you to take their sacrifices so lightly." Devack remarked seriously, "They are summoned by your hand to the mortal realm to fight under your command. At least _attempt_ to lead them to victory."

"I'll still win." I said weakly, for once at a loss for words.

 **Turn 5, Devack's turn; Devack 4000, Yuki 4000**

"I sacrifice the souls of these spirits, to summon the god lurking in the Shadows, Earthbound Immortal Cusillu (lv10, 2800/2400)." Devack didn't hear or didn't acknowledge my comment.

A bright light seeming appearing from nowhere filled the battle field, from its center emerged a black hole that spat out the Earthbound Immortal Devack summoned.

Devack raised both hands above his head, "Welcome, my Lord, to the mortal realm!"

"There're no disappearances in the Satellite." Kalin confirmed over his cellphone (yay, cellphone! Like I mentioned earlier, long-distance walkie-talkies).

"My immortal draws life from a different source." Devack explained.

"The spirit realm, right?" I recalled vaguely from the anime, "Doesn't that go against everything you just talked about? If you're so concerned about the duel monsters, shouldn't you at least avoid, I dunno, killing them?"

"Those monsters are weak," Devack elaborated at my disapproving look, "Not in attack or defense, but in spirit. They willingly kneel to their human masters, never daring to even dream of freedom, let along conquest! They would do nothing but obstruct our cause, they're traitors to the duel monster race!"

"They're loyal to their friends!" Yusei protested.

"Friendship, is that what you're call it?" Devack mocked, "Where one dictates the fortunes and sufferings of the other?"

"I'm fairly nice to my monsters," I defended, "It's not like I'd take a monster and just tear its card up or anything."

"It?" Devack repeated mockingly, "Is that what you call a friendship?"

"What?" I was genuinely confused.

" _He._ " Devack explained, "Though he has no more powers in his own fate than whatever name you choose for him."

"...You may have a point." I admitted, finding myself siding with Devack again. If I referred to pets by 'he' or 'she', why didn't I do the same for duel monsters? Of all people, I should knew for certain that duel monsters were intelligent and a race on their own.

"Your penance comes too late," Devack said almost regrettably, "I cannot stop a Shadow Duel once it had commenced. Though I will finish this battle quickly and end your suffering."

"I might sympathize a little with what you're saying, but I'm still not gonna lose," I said flatly, rolling my eyes.

"That won't be up to you. Zeman the Ape King's attacks cannot be stopped by spells or traps, and he can negate any attack. Earthbound Immortal Cusillu is invincible to your attacks, spells and traps. Accept your doom in face of the Dark King."

"What does he mean?" Akiza asked curiously.

"Cusillu is not affected by my spells or traps, it cannot be attacked by other monsters and it can attack directly. I think that's about all." I explained from memory.

"If Cusillu would be destroy by battle, I could tribute in his stead another monster, in the process cutting your life points by half."

None of my people even pretended to look worried, I concur, I'm not exactly concerned either.

"Meh."

"Your pride shall be your downfall, I activate from my hand, the trap Typhoon, to destroy your Swords of Revealing Light. Now nothing on your field can hinder my advances!"

"Face-downs," I coughed.

"I activate the field spell Closed Forest, increasing his attack by another 200 points. My immortal, attack directly and destroy this Signer!"

"Activate trap, Sinister Shaddoll Games, I don't have a monster to flip face up, but it does allows me to send Shadoll Hound (lv4, 1600/1000) from my deck to the graveyard. When Shadoll Hound is sent to the graveyard, it," I paused, a little flustered, "I mean, he can force your immortal into the defense position. Next, I will chain to that the activation of the trap monster **Shadoll Core (lv9 1400/1950)** , which I'll place in defense mode."

"So you've hindered my immortal for one turn." Devack dismissed, "We will only come back stronger. Zeman, destroy Shaddoll Core!"

My monster did its, I mean his (her?) best to shield me from the damage as (s)he shattered into pieces, even the residual of the attack felt like being swept over by a tidal wave, with the suffocation and sheer force of the impact knocking me backwards.

Chaos cocked his tranquilizer, aiming it in my direction, ready to end the duel when necessary.

 **Turn 6, Yuki's Turn; Devack 4000, Yuki 4000**

"It seems my victory is in sight." Devack boasted, "With both of my monsters immune from your attacks, you can only wait till your demise."

"You really don't know too much about this game do you?" I countered, pulling my focus back into the duel, "I'll start by playing Shadoll Fusion. When you have an extra deck monster on the field, I can summon monsters using materials directly from my deck. I will tune Shaddoll Beast with Effect Veiler to synchro Summon, **El** **Shaddoll Construct (lv10, 2800/2500)**. I also get to draw a card, but I don't think I'll need that."

"Your monster is powerful, but she wouldn't be able to withstand my Immortal's attack next turn."

"There is no next turn. I banish Shaddoll Beast and Effect Veiler from my graveyard to special summon **Chaos Sorcerer (lv7, 2300/1600)** from my hand. Next, I normal summon **Shaddoll Falco (lv2, 800/1400)** to the field and discard Shaddoll Squamata to activate from my hand Super-Polymerization, fusing Falco with Zeman the Ape King to summon, **El Shaddoll Winda (lv7, 2200/1400)**."

"Chaos Sorcerer's effect allows him to banish one monster from the field each turn." Devack finished the my train of thought. "Earthbound Immortals are not affected by the opponent's spells or traps, but the one effect from which my Immortal is not immune is the powers of a fellow duel monster."

"I'm sorry, my friends. I've failed you" Devack spoke to his monsters on the field and in the graveyard instead of to me, "Despite the trust you placed on me, I couldn't free you from your bondage. Forgive me."

"But!" I tried but didn't know what to say, suddenly feeling like the villain for some reason. But I'm not the villain! Am I?

* * *

Devack had always been stupid, Greiger mused, always going on and on about how 'duel monsters should rule the mortal realm'. There is no 'should', there is only what 'is', and what 'is not'. In this world, the only way to win is to abide by a mortal set of rules. Thankfully, Tono had shown him exactly how to do that.

"Tono!"

I looked up at Greiger's voice I could barely see him. He was standing on top of an abandoned building nearby, his duel runner still revving beside him. How the heck did he get a duel runner up on the roof?

"Greiger?" Devack said in surprise, "What are you doing here? This is my game!"

"Game?" Greiger scoffed, "If this is a game, then you're playing it wrong. In case you haven't noticed, your opponent is playing by an entirely different set of rules and she's destroying you with it."

"What is the meaning of this?" Devack demanded.

"Look up from your duel monsters, Devack. This is the mortal realm and there's more than one way to kill a mortal."

Devack looked on uncomprehendingly, though my team was beginning to catch on.

"I learned something valuable from you, Tono," Greiger continued, "Why trust anything to a Fate, or for that matter, to a children's card game?

Greiger was hold something in his hands but I couldn't tell what. My eyesight's really been going, now that I have cellphones, computers and tablets again.

Akiza reached for her deck, throwing the first monster she touched into the air to summon Botanical Lion (lv4, 2000/1900). But although the monster is magical, her reaction time was not.

"It's a gun! Yuki, duck!" Yusei shouted. But bullets travel faster than sound waves.

All I saw was a glint of light and an inexplicable fear rose within me. Then I saw my duel monsters. First El Shaddoll Construct, then El Shaddoll Winda and Chaos Sorcerer. Each monster disappear from my field and materialize in a translucent form in front of me, just like they always do on a duel field, before being shattered again by the bullet. I felt hollow, lost, like gaining sight for the first time before immediately losing it again.

Then the impact hit me and I heard the gun shot ring out.

He shot me ! He saw the game wasn't going in his favor so he shot me!

 _Karma_ was the only thing that came into my mind as my world went black. In retrospect, I must have hit my head on the ground. For that brief second though, panic took over me, I honest thought I was going to die.

* * *

* I kid you not, Jack's duel runner was named Wheel of Fortunes in the Japanese version.

 **A/N:** Yuki's not dead, so technically not a cliff-hanger :D

 **A/N 2:** The anime didn't mention Devack's backstory,the only thing I could find online was that he was in a cult, so I thought, why not a duel monster cult?

 **A/N 3:** The duel monsters thing is frankly worthy of a story on its own. Not that I haven't tried, but the inter-relations between two species is too thin a line to write about, so I eventually gave up. Though if you think about the existence of duel monsters and the state of their existence, the entire story falls apart faster than you can say 'card games'. More on that later. :P


	46. The Compromise

**Disclaimer:** I do not own YGO 5Ds

Subtitle: Why We Resolve Inter-Dimensional Conflicts with Children's Trading Cards

* * *

I woke up to the nozzle of a gun pressed against my forehead. Greiger looked down at me with a satisfied grin that suggest he would love nothing more than to pull the trigger.

I froze over in fear.

I had never been so keenly aware of my own mortality. Technically, I could have been 'disappeared' at any time while I was at Neo Domino, but that just didn't have the impact of a gun to your head.

To be honest, I didn't think I'd be so scared. I mean, it's not like I hadn't prepared for danger. I had been wearing a bulletproof vest since the first day I met Akiza. I even sharped the edge of my duel disk like the other satellites, I swear that thing could slice somebody's arm off. The only reason I didn't get a gun is because I don't want to shoot myself in the foot. And I have prepared for 'accidents'. I had written my own will weeks ago and laid out a detailed strategy of what the Zephyrs should do following my (probably untimely) death to salvage this dimension.

The reasonable part of my brain kept on reminding me that fear doesn't do me any good right now, I needed to think and to act. The rest of my body simply refused to comply. You know that feeling when you hit your funny bone and your arm feels weak? That's what my entire body feels like. Hey, at least I haven't lost control over the autonomic part of my body, I remember thinking optimistically.

"You know Yuki, you had every advantage," Greiger gloated, which sort of helped to normalize the situation. I was very good at talking, and gloating. "Chances the rest of us could only dream of. Even in the Satellite you somehow found a way out. But that wasn't enough, nothing was ever enough for you. You knew my family were in danger, yet you did nothing about it! Just so you could use me, Rex Goodwin's lackey, to do your bidding. Now the tables have turned."

Greiger wasn't making sense, not really. And he knew that, he just didn't care. Why should this woman be able to get whatever she wants when his family burned to their deaths? Why shouldn't he play the villain rather than the victim when given the chance? He had had perfect self-restraint for the past two years, and look where that got him?

Now that he's dead, he was finally free to enjoy what's left of his life.

"Greiger, stop! This isn't the man you are. This isn't the big brother Annie and Max love!" Yusei called out.

"Loved." Greiger corrected. "Everything I ever loved is gone." He paused, "I have nothing left. Not even their ashes."

A chill ran down my spine. I knew exactly how he felt, I could understand the reckless abandon because I felt the same way when I first woke up in the Satellite, when everything I ever cared about was in a different world.

"And it's all because of her and you satellites! If I had been in Neo Domino, I could have found out about Goodwin's plans and stopped him." Gregier continued.

"I'm sorry for your loss, Greiger, but it's not your fault, you didn't know. None of us knew at the time." Yusei continued. "There was nothing any of us could have done!"

Now, normally I'm a pretty good liar but I don't perform well under stress.

My face contorted at Yusei's bold claim. Yusei must have thought it was true, but it wasn't, not even close. I knew. And I might have been able to stop it, if I had devoted enough time and resources. But, I mean, his family were going to come back alive anyways, so what's the big deal, right?

"You knew!" Greiger recognized the look on my face instinctively. "you actually knew! And you never even thought to mention it?!" Or was she hiding the truth from him on Rex Goodwin's orders?

Well... Not being able to think up a good answer (excuse) fast enough (due to fear), I kept my mouth shut.

So everything Roman told him had been the truth! Ton _o_ had been conspiring with Rex Goodwin since the very beginning, and they were equally responsible for his family's death!

Greiger's finger on the trigger began to tighten.

"Greiger! Stop!." Devack interrupted harshly. "You cannot destroy a Signer by mortal means."

"Why not?" Greiger demanded, "They'll be dead all the same. Doesn't that satisfy your God?"

"We duel in order to secure a victory for our Lord in the Netherworld," Devack gently but firmly pushed Greiger's hand down. "To defeat a Signer by bloodshed does no harm to the Crimson Dragon, the Beast would simply recruit another to its cause! We no longer have the time to find all five Signers again."

Greiger hesitated and I remembered to breathe again.

"But the next Signer would not be such a good duelist," Greiger argued, unwilling to let go of a chance to avenge his family, "Whoever they are would make a much easier target."

Devack hesitated, Greiger had a point. These Signers are proving to be quite formidable opponents.

"Same for the others. Why risk our _Cause_ ," Greiger resisted a shudder when he said those words, but it's the only way to convince Devack, "on a battle of duel monsters when we can ensure our victory? The Crimson Dragon had had time to train these Signers, any new recruits would be easy pickings."

Devack began to nod.

Seeing Devack's reaction, Akiza summoned **Black Rose Dragon (lv7, 2400/1600)** behind her. The monster was immediately matched by Greiger's **Flying Fortress SKYFIRE (lv8, 3000/2500)** and Devack's **Zeman the Ape King (lv7, 2500/1800)**. If those monsters begin a fight, even if Akiza somehow manage to win (which is looking pretty unlikely), all of us mortals would be dead anyways.

"No! You can't!" I shouted loudly while searching desperately for a reason why they can't do what I would have done in their shoes.

"I can't?" Greiger mocked. "Enlighten me, I beg of you."

"Because I have the Momentum." I replied confidently, having found the reason. I told you I was good at talking.

"So what?" Greiger pressed uneasily, astutely detecting a shift in the power balance.

"The Momentum." I repeated, managing to put a smile on my face again, speaking to Devack this time, "The machine that is the passage from the Netherworld into ours."

"What of it?" Devack is still cautiously keeping Greiger under check.

"There're two copies of that machine in the world, you control one, and I hold the other." I continued quickly before Greiger pulled the trigger, "With the press of a button, I could blow up one copy of the Momentum,, which would in turn destroy yours. To my knowledge, even Dark Signers cannot withstand the blast from the Momentum. With all of you dead and the passage to the mortal realm destroyed, Crimson Dragon rules for another 5000 years." To be honest, I have no idea if Dark Signers would be destroyed with the Momentum, but I'm betting he didn't know either.

"If so, why haven't you used it?" Greiger asked skeptically.

"Because it would blow up the Satellite," I said matter-of-factly, "That's where I am, remember?"

There it is again, that smart-alec, holier-than-thou tone, Greiger gritted his teeth. It's so tempting, it would be so simple just to pull the trigger...

As though reading his mind, Devack took the gun out of his hand.

"What do you propose?" Devack asked calmly, "As Greiger correctly surmised, if you try to change the rules every time you lose, there's no sense for us to play the game."

"How about this then," I took a deep breath, I can't believe I'm actually proposing this, "We will face off against every Dark Signer, till there's only one of us left. Last one standing wins humanity for the next five millennia."

"I will consult need to with Roman for such a consequential decision," Devack paused thoughtfully, "Though I see no reason he would decline, that has been his plan all along."

I was pretty sure he would say yes, but I was nevertheless relieved. And that's why I needed the Momentum, when both sides hold enough power to destroy the other, we're essentially both reduced to salami tactics, giving me time to think and react. I decided against saying that, seeing as I really shouldn't teach Greiger anymore than he already knows, and also I'm probably the only one here who knew what salami was.

"Very well," I grinned. I tried to reach a hand up to shake his hand, only to find I couldn't yet control my arm. "I will see you in another duel."

"Wait!" Greiger grabbed Devack before he could leave. That can't be all! He was so close! So close to getting revenge on this woman who let his family die! There's no way she would get off scot-free again just by scrounging up the right thing to say at the right time.

"Greiger?" Devack waited as Greiger knew he would, he had always been patient.

"This Signer remains a threat, does she not?" Greiger glanced down at the woman still lying on the ground, "She had never lost a duel and would have destroyed your Immortal if I didn't come in time." Greiger really wasn't mincing his words, whatever it took to get through to Devack. "With your Immortal destroyed, you would be nothing more than _human_."

Greiger said the last word like an insult.

"True, the Immortal is our Link to the Netherworld and the key to our powers." Devack admitted, "And Yuki is a challenging opponent, so what do you propose?" Devack asked. He had dedicated his life to bringing his Netherworld Master to the throne and bringing freedom to the duel monsters, so he knew very little else. Though if Greiger knew more, he was more than willing to listen.

"A duelist is nothing without her deck," Greiger grinned as he leaned down.

My deck? My deck never even factored into the equation since I had a gun aimed at my head a couple of minutes ago.

"Nobody's lucky forever, Tono. Once in a while, us underdogs do come up for air." Greiger reached down, removing my deck from my duel disk, flipping through. "Cards I've never even heard of, in your deck just because you wanted it. And how long did it take you to build your deck? A week? A day? Everything you ever wanted was handed to you on a silver platter."

A day, probably. I asked for for it and Rex Goodwin provided it as part of the deal for my stay in Domino. Of course, he doesn't realize Goodwin might have killed me anytime I was in Domino, or what I had to do to get to a position where I could risk my life to get those cards.

"This is your trump card, isn't it, Shaddoll Fusion?" He picked out both copies from my deck and ripped them up into quarters, tossed carelessly into the water.

"What's next, what about Shaddoll Falco? This must have been useful a couple of times." Greiger traced his fingers over the frame of the frail-looking bird, "So much power in such a small monster. Not anymore."

Seeing Akiza and her Black Rose Dragon about to rush up, Greiger shook his head slightly, pulling out a second gun and twirling it in his fingers casually.

"Would you like me to list each card out before ripping them up? I believe I will."

"Greiger." Devack interrupted, "Winning is our business and it has nothing to do with duel monsters. Win or lose, you will show these monsters the respect they deserve."

"You always were the stickler," Greiger laughed in response but complied none the less. He gathered the cards in my deck and extra deck, tossing them onto the ground, firing at them a couple of times until the cards caught on fire.

"What happens to the monsters...?" I directed the question at Devack. I was still terrified but it was something I had to find out.

"They lose a passage into the mortal realm, though in exchange, they are freed from your control." Devack responded coolly, "More than a fair trade. When our Lord rises, they will be free to enter this world once more. "

"What about..." I gestured vaguely at where my monsters had appeared to block the bullet for me.

"Mortal weapons does no harm to Duel Monsters." Devack seemed to understand my unfinished questions perfectly, "Now they're back in Hell where they came from."

"Hell?" I asked before I could stop myself.

"The Shadow Realm. The mortals have always called it Hell."

"I think our job today is done," Greiger haven't felt this sense of accomplishment in a long while. Now that Tono doesn't have her deck anymore, why shouldn't he let her live a little longer. The Zephyrs don't provide cable to the Satellite yet, so her suffering would be the only entertainment he had in this town. "I look forward to our next duel."

"Indeed," Devack agreed, "We must report back to Roman with the new developments."

X

Seeing them ride off, I suddenly felt another wave of fear washing over me as my overactive imagination eagerly went over all the ways my last encounter could have gone very, very wrong. I felt nauseous and saw nothing but stars in front of my eyes. My heart still pounding in my chest and in my ears.

"Are you okay?" Yusei asked, hovering over me.

I looked up at the crowd of concerned faces then mused over what I have learned with what little brainpower I had left- Dark Signers were finally going sane and would deal with things the mortal way. We had maybe a couple of hours before they regroup, I really don't have time for a breakdown.

"I'll live." I said weakly, not entirely sure if it was the truth.

Realizing my struggle, Chaos reached down and dragged me up by the back of my shirt. He held up my entire weight with one hand, seeing as my legs were more decorative than anything else at this point. He dangled me for a bit, waiting for me to stand on my own again. My body had no plans of cooperating.

Too tired to talk, I glared at him instead. Chaos relented at put me on his shoulders.

A part of me was embarrassed at being given the first piggy-back ride since I was five, the vast majority of me couldn't care less at this point.

"Are you going to be okay?" He held onto my legs so I wouldn't fall off.

"I'm gonna get so wasted after this is all over," I laughed weakly and avoided his questions altogether.

Chaos squeezed my leg, his hands felt warm against bare flesh. I bent down to nuzzle him in gratitude, only to immediately straighten up again. Owww! He looked up at me inquiringly. "I think I may have broken something." I muttered.

* * *

 **A/N:** Okay, I'll be honest, I was never going to let Yuki keep the complete Shaddoll deck, it was way too powerful for this era. But with the resources at her disposal, Yuki would naturally get an OP deck while she's in Domino. Also I wanted to write a couple of duels with Shaddolls, XD

 **A/N 2:** I'm nearing 200 k. God I'm nearing 200k. I feel like I should write something to celebrate..


	47. Herding Cats

**Disclaimer:** I do not own YGO 5Ds

* * *

Did you know that a bullet proof vest doesn't protect you against all bullets? And even if it works, it doesn't protect you completely?

I did. Not that it did me any good when I was getting shot.

My x-ray showed 2 fractured ribs and a hairline fracture on the sternum, but nothing's broken- thanks to my duel monsters, I didn't get a rib jabbed into my liver or anything. Oh, and we have x-rays now! And ultrasound. (Nobody seems to know how to use ultrasounds yet, but Felice assures me somebody's working on that.) No CT or MRIs, which are so much more expensive, but we're making progress!

"Let's get you to bed," Galen just came back from dispersing the crowd that had gathered at the commotion. I expect the rest of the Zephyrs are either trying to prevent panic in the Satellite or fixing up their deck...

"Get everybody into the conference room," Yes, we also have a conference room, I've named it Duel Simulator because the entire place is a metal sphere, just like Kaiba's duel simulator (that I could remember). Only we did it for the impact resistance, not the flair. "Onward my steed!" I laced my fingers through Chaos's hair to steady myself, pointing towards our destination (because I was still sitting on his shoulders because I refused to walk).

"Now?" He looked up at me skeptically.

"Are you sure you can handle all of this?" Galen added.

"What do you mean?" I enjoyed being able to look down at Galen's pink hair, I have missed being tall.

"You've been through a lot, even by Satellite standards." He said as gently as he could.

"I can. I have to." Concentration was a little difficult because of my headache, his voice really didn't help.

"We don't need you for this, go take a break." He urged.

Time just isn't a luxury I can afford right now, I didn't even bother shaking my head.

"I'll be fine," I grinned with some effort at the memory being brought to the surface again, "As soon as I catch Greiger and make a rug out of his skin, I'll be perfectly fine again."

Galen, being sixteen, probably thought I was kidding. Chaos was old enough to know I wasn't

* * *

The only flaw with economic sanctions, Goodwin mused wistfully, is that they take too long to take effect. He might not have that much time left.

Signers and Dark Signer are the envoys of powers for their respective gods and the passages through which these beasts send their magics into this world. For the Crimson Dragon to match the Ruler of the Dark World in strength in the mortal realm, all Signers and Dark Signers must have had their marks activated.

And he needs their powers to be in perfect balance before either side loses, if he hopes to harness both gods. The need to identify the fifth Signer is imminent.

Yuki claims to not be the last Signer, but her duel records against Dark Signers and Signers alike suggest otherwise. Moreover, if recent events are any indication, she can hardly be taken at her word.

Then again, she doesn't yet have a mark.

"Lazar," He pushed the intercom on his desk, "Where is the other suspect Signer?"

"That little girl Luna?" Lazar jumped, "Those satellites never took her out of the city, Director, she lives in the Tops."

Two carefully chosen phrases tactfully linked together to avoid answering his question. That means Lazar doesn't know and hasn't been tracking someone likely to have been the fifth Signer. Goodwin felt too tired to even point this out.

"Find her and bring her here." Goodwin ordered, "You have 24 hours."

"Yes sir, Director Goodwin," Lazar stuttered, shutting off the screen as Goodwin indicated the end of their exchange.

To prevent the Netherworld God from entering this world, the Signers must defeat all Dark Signers and seal the Old Reactor with all five Signer Dragons. That should take them at least 24 hours, right?

* * *

"You actually won?" Vincent asked as he saw Devack coming through the door unharmed, he couldn't hide the surprise in his tone even if he tried. And he didn't try. "Against Yuki?"

Devack didn't seem offended by the remark as he took a seat at Roman's right hand. Greiger followed suit.

"Our duel was interrupted," Devack said uncomfortably, he never did like any of these new Signers.

Ara and Vincent exchanged a look then looked at Greiger. Devack certainly wouldn't be speaking like this if the duel had been interrupted while in his favor, it looks like Greiger had learned something during his time in the Satellite after all.

"The unmarked Signer possess the Momentum and has it under control," Devack explained simply, "She threatens to unleash its full powers should we destroy the Signers by mortal means."

Roman secretly breathed a sigh of relief. It was only a matter of time before the other Dark Signers realized the fragile nature of Signers off the field, even Kuriboh could shatter their mortal form in battle. At least these Signers have obtained the means of protecting themselves against such an attack.

"Then what does she propose?" Roman inquired as though nothing was out of control.

"She's bluffing," Ara said at the same time, and continued. "Activating the Momentum to destroy us or the Old Reactor involves blowing up the entire Satellite, killing all its citizens and themselves with the blast. She doesn't have the guts."

"Are you certain of her intentions?" Roman grunted.

"When is she going to press the button?" Ara shrugged, "Will she kill half a million people when the first Signer is killed? The second? Third? Fourth? As long as we stick to salami tactics, she'll never press the button."

"Salami?" Greiger repeated the unfamiliar word.

Vincent sighed a little, he hadn't had salami either until Yuki took over the Satellite, all the Magicians loved it. "She had done some good for this town."

"There is a way to guarantee victory even in a duel," Greiger dropped the subject, "I had destroyed Tono's deck."

Roman gasped. Ara and Vincent rolled their eyes simultaneously at his reaction.

"It was simple once I had her at gun point," Greiger boasted, he really does think it was a smart move. "I'm sure even a child can defeat her now."

Most Signers do not have super powers with which to protect themselves, Greiger's method may be crude but would all but guarantee them victory.

"No!" Roman rebuffed with an explosive force that surprised the room, he quickly thought of an excuse to cover up the outburst "I will not have you make a mockery of this Battle!"

"If you do that, Yuki might actually press the button," Vincent added coolly.

"Then it is decided," Roman concluded before anybody could object, "You shall each find your Signer as we discussed and defeat them for our Dark Lord."

"Yes, Roman." Devack was the first to agree, "I won't fail you again."

Roman swept his eyes across the room, none met his eyes. "When Misty returns, send her in." He instructed.

As the others filed out the room, Roman's eyes followed them. The lake of amorphous dark energy bubbled under his gaze, almost swallowing up the draw bridge that linked this room to the mortal realm. Evil was never known for its patience.

He ran a hand across his right arm, feeling the mark burn deeper into his flesh, sending pulses of pain that shook him to his core. Rex had been less than efficient recently. If his younger brother doesn't hurry up, all hope really would be lost.

* * *

Inside our Duel Simulator (I should just rename it The Simulator, shouldn't I?), our team had gathered for an emergency meeting given the new development. Except Akiza, she's outside with all the duel monsters she could summon to make sure nobody could spy on our conversations.

"Neo Domino is right on our heel, we have to get this done and get this done quick, seek them out, force them into war." Galen was saying

"I won't risk the Satellite, if Dark Signers summon anything at all and set it loose, this town is doomed." (Chaos)

"You are fortunate the Dark Signers agreed to settle this battle with duels at all, do not tempt them further." (Kalin)

"If what Devack said had half an ounce of truth, if we defeat the Earthbound Immortals, the Dark Signers would be freed. That's our only chance to get Vincent back! The faster we find him, the better our chances are." (Felice)

"What Devack said? What about what our research said?" (Nervin)

"The Earthbound Immortals can extend their powers into this dimension, though if Devack is telling the truth, we are at least safe for now." (Yusei)

"Never trust a Dark Signer, Yusei, take my word." (Kalin)

"I believe Vincent still has goodness inside him, he's still there somewhere, we can't just let him die." Felice took our the Ancient Fair Dragon Vincent gave her and slapped it on the table.

"How can we guarantee a win if we duel him and what would happen if we lose?" (Nervin)

"What about Neo Domino, how much time do we have before they take over the city in our chaos?" (Galen)

"Should we evacuate? We do have a way out now, why aren't we moving people somewhere safer?" (Crow)

"We have bigger concerns right now, if we lose these duels, the entire world is doomed! How is that not the only thing we're discussing right now?" (Cyril)

"It's too dangerous to risk everything on a duel!" (Kalin)

"We must! If it's the only way to protect this town, we'll fight against all odds and we _will_ win. We have to." (Yusei)

X

I had asked the simple question of what we should do next, then this happened.

God, it's like herding cats.

The arguments droned on finally merging into a white noise, luring me into a comfortable slumber. I nodded, then nodded again, finally flopping face first onto the table, the cold metal (yay, metal!) surface slammed into my forehead, temporarily numbing the burning inside my skull and waking me up completely. I tried to bang my head against the table again, but my head was too heavy and I couldn't quite lift it high enough.

The room fell into a dead silence. Even with my head down, I could feel their eyes on me but nobody said a word. If they continue to tip-toe around me like this, I'm gonna punch somebody.

"First of all," I began, lifting my face off of the nice cool table reluctantly, "I didn't get shot just so we could 'fight against the odds'."

"What choice do we have?" Yusei asked.

"I prefer odds that are overwhelmingly in our favor," I met his eyes to acknowledged his concern, then continued. This is as safe a room as we have, and I have to say this stuff sometime. "And right now, I think that's where we are."

"In _our_ favor you said?" Felice raised her eyebrows, "How do you figure?"

"In terms of this fight with the Ruler of the Netherworld at least," I elaborated a little. Sure there's still the rest of the world to deal with, but one thing at a time.

"I'm not a Signer," I began, pleased to find that nobody was too surprised, I continued before they could discuss that too,"But I had been contacted by the Crimson Dragon before, that's the clouds you saw over our place. And it had asked me to ensure the defeat of the Ruler of the Netherworld without the use of duels."

The chatter began again, I coughed emphatically, determined to at least get my first point through before they started talking.

"'Defeat' for these monsters means preventing it from taking over this world, which we can do, by simply defeating each of the Dark Signers. Shouldn't be too hard, they all conveniently have a reason to want to duel somebody in the Satellite." I grinned at the joke nobody understood. Roman Goodwin had handpicked Dark Signers who had personal vendettas against the Signers.

"That is correct," Kalin confirmed, "The Ruler of the Netherworld needs the bond it shares with its Dark Signers to cross over and stay in this world."

"I'll go send feelers out to locate them right now." Galen stood up, nodded at the room, "Shouldn't take too long I'll call if I hear anything."

"Alright, now that Galen's taking care of that," I scratched my nose, "Why don't I give you guys some time to absorb this information and I'll answer any questions you have before we move on to why I really gathered you here."

"Why you really..." Cyril repeated weakly.

"Right, about what's going to happen after we defeat the Dark Signers." I said brightly.

* * *

"Luna!" Leo dragged his sister through what seemed to be endless hallways, all looking exactly the same.

"I can't Leo!" Luna panted. She had already lost her pink jacket, and her pink t-shirt was ripped at the left shoulder, revealing a large cut underneath. "I really can't, go without me!"

"I won't do that!" Leo protested, still pulling on Luna's arm.

"Kuribon is telling me to go this way!" Luna stumbled behind him as she directed them a step closer to the outside.

Unlike Lazar, Sayer had kept track of the last suspected Signer. If her powers were not from that supposed 'Crimson Dragon', then she must be a psychic duelist! He had captured Luna and Leo immediately after Tanner sent them home after the Fortune Cup, perfectly illustrating why 2 ten-year-olds shouldn't be left alone to their devices.

Leo grabbed her as he saw a guard get closer, hiding the both of them in an empty room nearby.

"I'm sorry, Leo" Luna collapsed as soon as she got into the room, tears streaming down her cheeks, "This is all my fault, none of this would have happened if it weren't for me."

"Don't say that Luna, you can't blame yourself," Leo sat down beside his sister, offering his jacket to dry her eyes, "It's Sayer's fault, not yours!"

"And I'm not even strong like Akiza, otherwise I could at least get us out." Luna leaned against her brother's shoulder, "I wish I were stronger."

"Yeah," Leo sighed, sounding much older than his age, "Me too sis, me too."

* * *

 **A/N:** I'm gonna cut it off here because I need some time to organize what Yuki says when she reveals her sinister scheme, though I feel like her path is pretty much inevitable at this point, so it shouldn't be too much of a surprise.

 **A/N 2:** I repeat, the Ruler of the Netherworld will _not_ be defeated by card games. I've been going in circles a little bit between to duel or not to duel, seeing as my original plot clearly stated the world cannot be saved by card games, but card games makes life (mostly my life) so much easier.

In case you're not familiar with the original plot (10 yrs after it aired...), Yusei went through the Dark Signer arc hoping to defeat each Dark Signer and sealing those inactivation sites to seal the Old Reactor to prevent the Ruler of the Netherworld from crossing over. He failed because he was supposed to have done it before sundown, but he didn't make the deadline. XD

Also I know way too much about this anime. :P


	48. The Takeover

Disclaimer: I do not own YGO 5Ds

* * *

"After we defeat the Dark Signers?" Felice repeated, "Then things get back to normal and we'll just keep going. Things are looking up, isn't it?"

Given what she knows, that's actually not an entirely unfair proposition. That's exactly what happened in the anime. After the world is saved, absolutely nothing changes. Nothing is done to prevent the world from getting into another near-apocalyptic situation. That happens pretty much every single time in the YGO franchise.

Actually, that might be one of the most realistic aspects of the show...

"There's only three problems with that," I replied. "First, we just threatened Goodwin with the Momentum, it's just a matter of time before other powers-that-be find out. Naturally, every villain with half a brain and every global government with at least one brain cell would be after this technology. Second, I have it on semi-reliable information that Goodwin won't be the Director for much longer, the new Directors are unlikely to shield us from the pressures of these groups like he did."

Make no mistake, Rex Goodwin is definitely protecting us right now. If he weren't, Kaiba Corp assassins probably would have killed me already. I mean, I essentially have the machine of infinite energy. He's doing it for himself, but I don't want the effort to go unrecognized.

"Most importantly, I don't want to." I paused, smiling more sincerely now, "I don't want to struggle for another ten, twenty years to become another Neo Domino. I don't want to kiss up to bureaucrats and corporations. I don't want to save the world, then still have to worry about our taxation status. I don't want to get back to normal. We've done a lot for the Satellite, sure, but Normal for the Satellite still sucks."

"Yuki, do you have in mind?" Yusei asked, "What more can we do?"

"You mean what more are we already doing." I corrected. "I think I mentioned that while in Domino, I bought a piece of land to the north of here, roughly a hundred by two hundred kilometers. All energy drained from the Momentum will be used to cleanse that area and make it inhabitable again.

Then we're going to move."

I flashed a smile, letting the information sink in.

"Move?" Chaos repeated, visibly alarmed. "Why? Why would we abandon the Satellite just as it is showing so much more potential?"

"We're not abandoning it," I was well-prepared for the question, "We just need more space, and population than the Satellite can handle right now. So we'll be expanding."

"The Satellite is almost a hundred kilometers squared and it has half a million people…" Nervin pointed out hesitantly.

"What more could we need?" Cyril finished the question for him.

"We need enough land for agriculture," I pointed out, "And enough population to build an armed forces to protect the Momentum. And enough influence to protect ourselves from the inevitable backlash of the federal government."

And probably a lot of other problems I have yet to discover. The challenge with heading a gang like this is, once you start, it's very difficult to stop. You've made too many enemies.

"We're like a four-year-old with a briefcase full of cash and a grenade," I simplified the situation as much as I could. Or better yet, imagine if the only power in the world with control of nuclear weapons and nuclear power reactors is Timbuuktu. I may not know much about international politics, but things won't end well for Timbuuktu. " Everybody would want a piece until we can protect ourselves, so we have to muscle up fast."

"Why not just give the hand the Momentum over?" Chaos asked in all seriousness, "Then we'll be building a good relationship with the government and we'll be safe. I mean, it's just technology."

Just Technology. I think that physically hurt me.

"A couple of reasons," I grimaced, deciding to dumb things down even further, "If we give it to any one group, they would naturally want to get rid of us so we can't give it to anybody else. And nobody will help us because everybody else automatically becomes our enemy. If we give it to everybody, well, everybody becomes our enemy."

"Then what are we going to do?" Chaos asked, "We could leak the information anonymously, then we won't be the target because it would be public knowledge."

"It might be difficult to disguise the source of that information," I said sarcastically, "seeing as we are the only people who possess it."

"I could publish it," Yusei offered gallantly after some thought, "Then nobody would suspect you. It was my father's work that got us into this mess, I should be the one to get us out."

"Please don't publish the technology behind a weapon that can easily destroy the world." I said flatly as I stared at Yusei trying to decide if he was serious. "If anybody were to have the Momentum, I'd much rather that be us and us alone."

For my own good if not for the good of the world.

Actually, almost entirely for my own good. If I weren't me, I wouldn't want me to have a weapon like that.

"Then what exactly are you going to do to keep us all from being killed?" Felice asked, "Both this agriculture and Momentum plan only seems to draw more attention to us."

"We'll start by consolidating the forces from within the Satellite. We'll need enough people to establish a settlement in due time, and an established selection process to weed out the riff-raff. But first, we'll have to get them under control."

We can have the Momentum, as long as we can protect it.

"I already got Blizzard to 'convince' these Stars of the Satellite to grace us with their presence, now they should be waiting for us in Duelist Kingdom."

Yes, we also have a conference room called Duelist Kingdom. I wanted to name each room after an arc in the YGO series, but then realized I've forgotten some of the arcs, and we've got way too many rooms for that.

"Now, if you guys will come with me briefly for a meeting with the public. I need you for muscle power."

"Now?" Cyril questioned.

"The Satellite needs to be ready to transition into the next stage as soon as we defeat the Dark Signers. At this rate, it might be tomorrow," I said naively.

I had thought the Momentum threat would buy me enough time with Rex Goodwin, and Roman wouldn't move as fast as he did. That way, I would have had more time to get Satellite under control. Now I must speed up things in the Satellite.

* * *

"This wasn't exactly what I had in mind when I asked you to coerce these 'up-standing citizens' of the Satellite into our lair- I mean our place, for a meeting," I coughed, "What did you think this was, a party?"

Our 'Duelist Kingdom' was decorated in strings of lights, random streamers, confetti, life-sized duel monster balloons, two long tables filled with food and (thank goodness because I'll really need it) a champagne tower, presumably filled with our self-made crap alcohol that hopefully won't make anybody blind. If nothing else, I thought Blizzard had better taste.

"Sorry, I must have misunderstood," Blizzard looked away uncomfortably, but didn't defend himself.

"It was my idea, I thought you could use a bit of cheering up," Akiza offered gently.

Sometimes I don't get her. Though I have been optimistic, my mood seems moot given our possible imminent or delayed destruction.

"Why not," She smiled, "As long as we get them here, what difference does it really make what this room looks like? You can play a couple of games too, show them what you got, it could be fun."

"I already did show off," I responded to her smile with a teasing grin of my own, "I'm showing you guys off, and I think these satellites are impressed."

Truth is, I really didn't feel like another card game.

Other than that, she has a point. Plus, if thing don't go in our favor, this might be the last bit of fun we have.

"Sure, enjoy yourselves. Stay sober, but otherwise, as long as we don't need you, go nuts," I stepped onto the stage at one end of the room. My eyes swept across the floor at the hundred or so satellites who were 'convinced' to come to our meeting room.

These people, mostly leaders within the Satellite (aka local gang leaders) set themselves aside with cleaner, less ragged clothes, and multiple deck holders on their belts. Due to limited resources, most gangs in the Satellite are fairly small and armed with duel disks instead of actual weapons, so it wasn't difficult for our security to round them up. They tried to stand their ground in the far corner of the room, guarding themselves against any members of our staff,, while stuffing as much food into their mouths as possible.

"Good morning ladies and gentlemen, I'm glad you could make it, and soon, I'm sure you'll be glad for having come here today. As you may be aware," I continued, ignoring the heated glared from my audience "The Satellite apparently hasn't been doing very well in my absence."

Not that my absence had anything to do with it.

Our little group had ran perfectly while I was gone. Everybody has sort of fallen into place, presumably because I wasn't around to get in the way. Felice remains in charge of sales and basically anything that involves contacting the outside world. Chaos is in charge of internal affairs, which I guess is everything inside the Satellite. Galen had taken over our security forces after Vincent's 'demise', and grew it to three hundred people. Crow is still the head of our 'educations department', aka primary school. Kalin is still designing roads and a transportation system for the Satellite, his most recent proposal to build a subway using the existing tunnels is met with severe backlash, considering the project would cut through many people's homes. Yusei is still our technology guru and is unknowingly working on the most powerful weapon in the world.

The point is, there were no explosions and nobody died. I think that counts as a win.

But if anything, the other areas are getting worse. The economy has expanded exponentially in the past couple of weeks, but our control of the area simply couldn't keep up. As a result, the situation in the Satellite has become very volatile.

Duel gangs are very defensive towards us in case we go into their territory. They're also more violent as they fight over the new money pouring in. Previously deserted areas becoming very profitable, and the center of the city is shifting quickly towards the shores. As a result, there's a rapid increase in turf wars. Several of which turned physical, though none resulted in any deaths yet.

We don't have the resources to handle the sheer volume of conflicts as it is. Sector usually only aggravate the situation whether they mean to or not. Plus, they don't have enough people either, they're really not designed for something like this.

"I understand that there's been an increase in conflicts while I've been gone, fighting over claims to the Satellite. Well, I have good news. All of that can stop now that I'm back, because none of you have anything to fight over. It's all my territory now." I looked at the crowd in front of me, daring any of them to meet me in the eyes, none did. "Since Satellite is federal property, I bought the entire thing from Goodwin. So yes, the ground you're standing on, the hole you're crawling back into to go to sleep tonight, that's all mine."

I had taken all the money from our coffers betting on the Fortune Cup games so Chaos had to issue currency to make ends meet. Most of the winnings were spent on buying the Satellite and a large piece of land to the north.

"Even more good news," I let my voice drown out the anxious chatter in the room, "Seeing as this is now my property, I consider your miserable lives marginally my responsibility. You have been hand-picked from the Satellite, for the role you have played in the past, your influence in your respective communities and a slightly less atrocious criminal record. So lucky for you, you losers might not be left behind as Satellite steps into a new era."

I saw horrified looks from the Zephyrs below the stage. We didn't rehearse any of this, so even they didn't know what I was about to say. Heck, I didn't know what I was about to say, all of this is entirely ad libbed. Though I do admit the 'being shot' thing might have affected me more than I'd like to admit.

"We'll be publishing our complete set of laws for the Satellite in due time," Eventually. Probably. Maybe. I mean, writing laws is presumably very complex. I say presumably because really, the idea just sort of slipped out. I have no idea how we're going to write laws, or what laws should include. "In the meantime, meet the face of the Justice in Satellite."

I motioned for Galen to come up onto the stage. He stared at me with his large, hazelnut eyes, eyelashes trembling with uncertainty and excitement. Finally, he broke into a smile, revealing large dimples on both sides of his cheeks. His pink hair bounced against the curves of his face as he hopped up the stage beside me.

Our Justice is sixteen and looks unbearably adorable.

I may not have planned this out as well as I would have liked.

"Uh, hi," Galen steadied himself, quickly getting his bearings. "Most of you have met me before and probably will again, and you know what I do. So all I want to say is, I'm here to play the bad guy. This is a time for change, we don't want anybody messing anything for us. We all know Neo Domino has it good over the river. So compared to our jails, Neo Domino prisons are gonna look like a vacation."

I gulped. Well, I never saw this side of Galen before.

"Why don't the rest of you guys come up too," I offered to the rest of my team, "Introduce yourselves."

Seeing Galen at my right, Yusei stood at my left hand. Crow and Akiza naturally followed him. Felice stood beside Galen, and Chaos to her right still. Kalin hesitated, and Chaos pulled him to the far right of the group.

This ensemble was enough to turn the anger in the crowd into fearful resentment. For the time, I can probably count on their reluctant cooperation.

* * *

I watched the rest of my team try to socialize with the satellites they somehow no long belonged to while I sat off the side with a large bag of butter popcorn and our new coke. The closest thing I could compare it to is vanilla coke zero, hands-down the worst coke. Given their relatively recent access to unlimited water, the Satellite public generally considers flavored water a luxury and had basically no standards, so our disgusting coke had been doing surprisingly well. I took another sip of my soda, then tossed a popcorn into my mouth.

The popcorn on the other hand, is my private stash. Well, Teddy's private stash. He offered to share it with me given my recent injuries, and I shamelessly took snacks from a fourteen-year-old. So the quality is actually decent, even by my standards. I stuffed another handful of popcorn into my mouth to distract myself from the scene in front of me.

Our impromptu gathering has been… unique. On one side are the larger crowd of Satellite gang leaders, dressed in their good jeans and least-torn t-shirts, cowering in a huddle trying to find strength in numbers. On the other side were the Zephyrs, dressed in business casual, cautiously and awkwardly trying to approach the satellites like the chaperone 'cool' parents trying to fit in at a teenager birthday party. Akiza's monsters still guarded the exits in case anybody tried to escape, and that didn't help things.

So overall, less like the decisive community gathering I had hoped for, and more middle-school dance party.

Speaking of. Kalin walked up slowly with a shy smile and a faint blush. He was dressed in a dark blue tuxedo that complemented his eyes and hair. Huh, did he go change or something?

He leaned forward, keeping his back straight and reached a hand out towards me, all the while looking at me expectantly.

I stared back blankly.

His smile became a little more forced and he bent down a bit further. I could hear the hushed whispers in the room.

Staring at the outstretched hand in front of me, I finally saw the right thing to do. I poured some popcorn into his outstretched palm.

Kalin left with a handful of popcorn and a dumbfounded expression.

Noticing the awkward interaction between us and the uncomfortable atmosphere left over, Blizzard leaned into Galen's ear and whispered something.

Nodding, Galen hopped over in front of me, reaching his hand out and bending forward exactly as Kalin had done. "Popcorn," He demanded like it was the most natural thing in the world.

I laughed and complied. Just like that, the tension dissolved into nothing, as though Kalin had come to me asking for popcorn all along.

"Are you actually this dense?" Galen sat down beside me, munching on the popcorn he just got.

"I don't want to give him hope when I know nothing will come out of it." I replied honestly.

"But I thought," Galen paused, "At least, a lot of people thought you two were gonna end up together."

"Urgh," I shuddered at the thought, "Really? That's messed up, buddy. Seriously!"

"What are you talking about?" Galen looked at me, baffled.

"While there's nothing wrong with a thirteen year-old wanting to date a twenty year-old, would you really date a twenty year-old who would date a thirteen year-old?" I questioned. The age of consent in Japan is 13, so things are messed up. Like really, really messed up if you've been watching their animes. But I grew up in what I like to consider 'the normal world', and I have standards formed by my upbringing.

Galen was obviously confused by my tangled logic, but he found the keyword. "So what are you going to do, date somebody your age?"

"My age?" I repeated, disgusted "You mean now? Like a thirteen year-old? What's wrong with you? I won't date a kid in grade 7!"

I won't become that twenty-something that dates a minor, Ra knows I'm already going to hell for child labor.

"I think my cut off is like 20," I said without thinking.

"But you just said-," Galen stammered something incoherent, then pointed out reasonably, "Then you might have a problem."

"I'll figure something out, I always do." If I can find a solution to defeating the gods that rule this world, my own love life should be a breeze, so not exactly a priority at this point.

* * *

A/N: I'm rather fond of this chapter though it took a while to get out. Sadly, I'm not familiar with international politics or macro economics, so it's always a struggle to get the basics right.

I've eventually decided that it would be easier to fix everything when this arc finishes rather than add chapters into earlier plot lines, so this is what you have. A bit was added to chapter 44 regarding Yuki's views on the Crimson Dragon. I liked it, but not reading it won't change anything.

A/N 2: Unveiling of Yuki's grand plan at the 200k mark feels appropriate. Yes, this has been the plan, by which I mean my plan, all along. XD

A/N 3:There's actually a fairly major deviation from previous assumptions, I have changed previous chapters and so I'm just going to pretend that it doesn't exist. XD, don't worry about it :P

My schedule will literally be worse than Satellite schedule for the next little bit (and as you know, I like to use 'literally' in a literal sense), so knowing me, updates might come faster than they have been…


	49. What Is It Good For

**Disclaimer:** I do not own YGO 5Ds

 **A/N:** I do not necessarily endorse anything any of the characters believe in this story.

* * *

Luna and Leo stayed crouched down in one of the many abandoned warehouses while Sayer's soldiers searched for them throughout the Arcadia compound. Their numerous close calls were only possible thanks to Luna's Kuribon, who's floating by them right now. The duel monsters Luna summons can choose to become invisible to humans who do not possess any magical powers, so Kuribon has been acting as their scout to avoid the guards. But even Luna knew this wouldn't last long, it was only a matter of time before Kuribon is seen by a psychic duelist.

"Go." Luna urged again. "Go get help, it's our only chance."

"I can't just leave you here Luna!" Leo repeated. "I'm your big brother, it's my job to protect you!"

"But-" Luna protested weakly, cut off as Leo held a hand over her mouth to stifle her gasp of pain as another guard inched closer.

"Can't you send your monsters out for help?" Leo whispered.

"I can't send them out that far yet," Luna whispered back, "If they get too far away, they disappear.

As previously mentioned, cellphones are not accessible to the public due to the lack of commercial satellites, despite the technology being readily available. This again illustrates the importance of a reliable police force, as well as why two ten-year-olds shouldn't be left alone in a metropolis, whether or not they have enough money to survive.

"We can't keep going like this," Leo muttered, "We have to find a way out! Maybe if I can just distract them long enough, you can go get help!"

Both kids knew, their 'help' lies in their friend Yusei, who resides in the Satellite, but neither knew how to find him.

"There is a way," Luna murmured softly, "Maybe I can get Yusei to come find us."

"How?" Leo barely had time to ask before Luna suddenly ran out into the open. Despite wearing sneakers, her footsteps echoed in the empty hallway, catching the attention of the guards.

"Luna!" Leo chased after her without a second thought.

"I'll go with you." Luna said shakily, her voice gradually getting louder as she spoke, "As long as Sayer beats me in a duel!

X

"You? Want to duel me?" Sayer laughed at the girl in front of him. They're not much more than half his height and looked like a leprechaun standing in front of him. "I'm afraid I have no interest in dueling you, dear Luna. I am well-aware of your powers and have no need to test them in a duel. Your brother, however, remains a mystery."

"Fine, then I'll duel you! And if I win, you'll let us go!" Leo demanded firmly.

"You must first claim victory before naming demands." Sayer dismissed him. Of course he wasn't going to let them go. If Leo win, it just speaks more to their potential. Either way, as long as he has the boy in his possession, Luna isn't going anywhere.

Luna looked at Leo worriedly. They know not to trust Sayer to keep up his end of the bargain, even ten-year-olds were taught not to trust strangers who tried to kidnap them. But it was the only way they could think of to get in touch with Yusei.

"We won't duel you here!" Leo interjected, "I don't trust you, who knows if you have something that can spy on us! I'll only gonna duel you in the open!"

"So you're planning an escape?" Sayer jeered.

"I would never run from a duel!" Leo looked insulted. "We just want to duel you fair and square! Then there's no way we can lose! Tell you what, we'll duel you up there!" He pointed angrily to the roof of the Arcadia building, "Well? Are you game or are you chicken?"

"I'll teach you the rules of Arcadia in a duel first, perhaps then you'll learn to behave properly in front of your elders," Sayer agreed to the duel. As a psychic duelist, he can give Leo a duel he'll never forget.

"Let's duel!" Leo said after they had followed Sayer up the elevator and onto the roof.

* * *

 **Turn 1: Sayer's Turn. Sayer 4000, Leo 4000**

"Allow me to begin," Sayer said in a characteristic condescending tone. "I summon Psychic Snail (lv4, 1900/0) in attack mode. I'll place two cards face down and end my turn. The field is all yours. I am eager to learn of your potentials, do not disappoint me."

 **Turn 2: Leo's Turn. Sayer 4000, Leo 4000**

"If you want to win, you'll definitely be disappointed!" Leo shot back, "Your monster may be powerful, but I got a few tricks of my own up my sleeves. Me and my machines are gonna totally wipe the floors with you! I summon **Morphtronics Celfon (lv1, 100/100)** to the field. He's not much to look at, but his effect lets me roll a dice and look through that many cards in my deck. I rolled a 5, so I get to look at the top 5 cards in my deck and special summon any monster I like. I choose **Morphtronic Scopen (lv3, tuner, 1200/400)** in attack mode. Scopen will help me to special summon **Morphtronics Boomboxen (lv4, 1200/800)** to the field. I tune my Morphtronics Celfon to my level 3 Scopen to synchro summon, **Armory Arm (lv4, 1800/500)**. Next, I'll equip Boomboxen with Armory Arm, increasing his attack by 1000 to 2200! Boomboxen, attack and destroy Psychic Snail!"

The magical humanoid snail was sliced to pieces by the crude imitation of a boombox.

"And now, my Armory Arm's effect activates," Leo said smugly. "Every single one of your Psychic Snail's attack points will be dealt to your life points as damage."

Sayer's face tightened as his life points dropped to 1800.

"That's not all." Leo continued with a cocky laugh, "My Boomboxen has a special effect too, he gets to attack twice per turn so I can wipe your life points out in one turn! Boomboxen, Sonic Blast!"

"I activate Emergency Teleportation to bring Krebon from my deck onto the field, in attack mode!" Sayer flipped over one of his two facedown cards. "I pay 800 LPs and Krebon negates your attack!"

"Aww," Leo pouted, "I almost won in a single turn. Oh well. I'll beat you next turn then. I'll put one card face down and end my turn."

 **Turn 3: Sayer''s Turn. Sayer 1000, Leo 4000**

"I applaud your efforts Leo, there may be some hope for you after all." Sayer clasped his hands together, "But let's finish the duel first. I will start by summoning **Serene Psychic Witch (lv3, 1400/1200).** I tune her with Krebon to synchro summon **Magical Android (lv5, 2400/1700)** in attack mode.

That's stronger than his Boomboxen already, Leo winced, but at least he laid a trap down first.

"I hope to finish this quickly, so I will continue with a spell, Polymerization!"

"A fusion monster?" Leo gasped. Ever since the advent of Synchros, fusion monsters had largely fallen out of favor, so you can bet when one shows up, it's going to be powerful.

"I fuse Magical Android on my field with Mental Seeker in my hand to fusion summon, **Ultimate Axon Kicker (Lv10, 2900/1700)**!"

"Wow that's a big dragon!" Leo arched his neck to study the duel monster on the field, it was even more powerful than his powertools dragon!

"Ultimate Axon Kicker, attack and finish this duel!" Sayer ordered.

"Hah! Not so fast! I activate Sakuretsu Armor!" Leo flipped over his facedown card victoriously. "This is the armor of the fallen, their combined spirit will destroy any attacking monster! My Boomboxen is safe!"

"Not quite." Sayer replied, "Ultimate Axon Kicker's special ability protects it from being destroyed by any card effect."

"What?" Leo said disbelievingly. "That's just not fair!"

Sayer chuckled at the childish comment, "I will also aid him with a spell card from my hand, Battle Fusion. For this turn, the attack of my monster will increase by the attack of the monster it attacks."

"Ultimate Axon Kicker already has 2900 attack points, if you add Boomboxen's 2200, that's... That's... Um.. That's" Leo struggled.

"5100." Luna couldn't help interjecting from the sidelines. Even in the middle of a duel, she couldn't help feeling a little embarrassed. She had always told Leo to study harder in school instead of spending all his time in duel monsters.

"5100!" Leo repeated, before the force of the attack knocked him backwards, causing him to almost fly off the roof.

"Leo!" Luna rushed forward as Leo's life points dropped **to 1100**.

"I, I'm f-fine, Luna." Leo managed to get back onto his feet, trying to stop his body from trembling in pain so Luna wouldn't worry. "It's nothing. He can't beat me that easily."

"This is a psychic duel," Sayer stated dismissively, "I'm a psychic duelist. All the damage I deal will be felt by my opponent Ultimate Axon Kicker uses that energy to heal me. Thanks to his special ability, I gain life points equal to Boomboxen's attack." Sayer's life points now stood comfortably at 3200.

"I'll still defeat you!" Leo glared at Sayer, "No matter how much you try to hurt me!"

"You have already lost your chance at victory and it's sad you don't see that." Sayer replied, "Because now I activate the spell, De-Fusion. I return my monster back to the deck to special summon **Mental Seeker (lv3, 800/600)** and **Magical Android (lv5, 2400/1700)** to my field."

"Leo..." Luna murmured. Though both of them knew their goal was never to win this duel, it still hurt her to see Leo like this.

"Now, Mental Seeker, attack!" Sayer commanded.

"Wait, stop!" Luna shouted from the sidelines. "Why are you doing this?"

Every attack by Sayer's monsters are dealing Leo real damage. With 1100 life points remaining, Sayer's Magical Android is more than enough to finish the duel.

"Both of you must learn, Luna," Sayer turned to her with a mirthless smile, "Disobedience will be punished."

Mental Seeker's attack hit Leo first, bringing him to his knees. Before he could get up again, a blast from Magical Android sent him toppling backwards, until he tripped against the ledge and fell off the roof.

* * *

"Leo!" Luna screamed. A bright red light shone through her right sleeve as her arm is finally tattooed with the Hand of the Crimson Dragon.

Before Sayer even did anything, a Kuribon appeared, catching Leo in its mouth and dragging him back into safety. In calling to her powers, she had summoned a physical monster for the first time to save her brother.

She rushed to her brother's side, cradling Leo's head on her knees. Leo was barely conscious, blood oozed out of his mouth at an alarming rate.

"That was an unforeseen setback, I see no reason he shouldn't recover fully very soon under our care," Sayer looked down at the two kids, explaining himself away.

Luna didn't answer, instead, she picked up Leo's deck, carefully searching through it.

"Do you want to play too? I've seen your duels Luna, I'm afraid you have even less chance than your brother." Sayer commented. "That is not where your strengths lie. You're a psychic duelist, and you must learn to harness that power for the sake of psychic duelists everywhere. Too long we have been shunned for our skills, when it is clear that we are the superior species, a new direction for the human race. They fear us, just like you must have heard the whispers behind your back, accusing you of being weird, stupid, insane."

Seeing his words having little effect, Sayer changed his tactics. "How many friends do you have other than your brother?"

That finally got Luna's attention, she frowned slightly without looking up.

"Why do you think Leo is so protective of you?" Sayer continued, "If not because he knows what's out there waiting for you. He might have the same powers you do, don't you want to build a world where your brother won't be shunned for what he is?"

Luna finally found what she was looking for. She took out the Powertool Dragon from Leo's deck and summoned it. The large mechanical dragon raised into the air far higher than the duel disks would allow. Luna struggled, channeling all her powers into the monster so it would grow larger and fly even higher.

Sayer tensed up instinctively, before realizing this was merely a hologram like Luna's previous conjurings.

"And what good will that do?" He asked, then his brain clicked. "You little twerps, you wanted to come to roof to summon that monster all along!"

There was no way for the twins to get out, but Leo's signature monster flying in the sky might just be enough to get Yusei and Akiza come sniffling around.

"I will never help you, Mr. Sayer," Luna looked up, standing up. She was hardly at eye-level with Sayer, but she nonetheless looked every bit his equal, "I have heard from Akiza what you do, what Arcadia does. Psychic duelists aren't accepted yet, I know that. I would have had a lot more friends if they were, I know that too. But I won't help you attack innocent people who just happened to be scared of the power we have. I'm scared of it, why shouldn't they be?"

"You realize what this means?" Sayer warned ominously.

"I was raised by duel monsters, Mr. Sayer," Luna replied firmly, "And they raised me better than that."

Another problem child, preteen verging on rebellious teenager. Sayer rolled his eyes, what else is new? Not like he hadn't dealt with a hundred and one of those kids before. Nothing a bit of Stockholm Syndrome won't fix.

* * *

"Where's Yusei?" I asked, "Actually, forget Yusei, where's Akiza?"

Akiza's the linchpin of our entire plan, being the only one with magical powers to summon magical beasties to fight against other people with magical beasties.

"They went to the pier," Galen offered absentmindedly, "They said they felt another Signer in distress, and after seeing the hologram Powertools Dragon, they set off towards Neo Domino."

Great, Luna. I realized immediately. Leo's the only one with Powertools Dragon and Luna's the only one who can summon a hologram like this, it's not rocket science to put one and one together.

"Actually, we have another problem," He began.

"Just do whatever you want," I dismissed. I had to get them back. Sector Security has been watching Satellite shores closer than the Fortune Cup finals, there's no way either of them would cross into Neo Domino without start a small war.

X

"Pick up a ten-year old girl?" Lazar muttered angrily, "What's next, walk his dog? Water his plants? I'm the Vice Director of Domino City for god's sake, not some glorified maid."

Rex Goodwin had disappeared from Neo Domino, leaving behind him only the instructions to locate and obtain the ten-year old girl, Luna. At least Satellite's paying him for getting her to safety, so he'll get something out of it.

X

"Jack?" Mina stepped into the room of his champion cheerfully, "Director Goodwin finally say yes. The helicopter's ready, we can go whenever you want."

"Great! Good work Mina." Jack complimented, the good news distracting him from the pain in the mark on his arm"Let's get back to the Satellite."

He took a deep breath, ready to face the past he thought he had left behind.

"Hey Jack, wait for me!" Carly snapped her laptop shut, there's no way she was gonna miss this story.

* * *

Late into the night, deep inside the Old Reactor, the duel between the leaders of Light and Darkness had just ended. Hidden from the eyes of the public just like the entire Battle itself.

"What happened?" Roman looked so grave he could have been mistaken for a dead man that was never converted to Dark Signer status. He all but ran across the dueling arena, crouching onto the floor on all fours, fumbling around to look through Rex's deck. Though having just lost the duel, Rex couldn't help jeering at his brother's hysterics.

"What happened?" Roman demanded again. He stood up abruptly, grabbing Rex by the collar of his shirt and pulling his younger brother up into a kneeling position from where he had been sitting on the ground. "What were you thinking? You can't win with a deck like this!"

"And so I didn't." Rex replied breezily, sitting back onto his heels on the floor.

Roman looked into his brother's eyes, seeing naked ambition burning inside his grey eyes for the first time, after his younger brother finally decided to drop the mask he had been wearing all these years. For the first time since his death, Roman felt fear.

Before Roman had fallen victim to the God of the Netherworld's powers, he had entrusted the Sign of the Crimson Dragon to Rex Goodwin, his own flesh and blood. In this Battle of Light and Darkness, Rex was supposed to lead the Light to victory.

Roman had taken the utmost care in selecting his fellow Dark Signers, duelists whom he thought were equal in skill and ability to the Signers

Let's be honest, they weren't the brightest marbles in the drawer. He could see them win a couple of local championships, but he doubt any of them would even make it nationally. Nor did he spend too much time on procuring the best decks for himself or the others. Struggling against his Destiny had only brought him pain and misery in the past, so this time, Roman would leave the Battle and the future of humanity to Fate and Fate alone. Then Rex has to come ruin his perfect plans.

"But why Rex?" Roman could barely keep his voice from shaking, "You were the best chance the Light will ever have."

"Light? Is that what you call It?" Rex mocked. "I call It the Crimson Dragon."

"What's the difference?" Roman asked hurriedly. He still gets breaks when his mind is free from the Ruler of the Netherworld, but those times are becoming shorter and fewer in between.

"The difference Roman?" Rex repeated incredulously. "Millions die every year from war and famine. Both entirely preventable, yet humanity has been living and dying in misery for as long as it remembers. Under the Crimson Dragon's reign, we suffered through four world wars in three centuries, until the human population is a mere fraction of what it had been, and you call That Beast the Light?"

"This is a battle of the Gods, Rex. This is not a war for us to interfere." Roman had learned the feeble nature of humanity's fight against these magical beasts, he was not about to repeat that mistake. That's why he had hand-selected Dark Signers who were perfectly matched in ability to the Signers. In the countless simulations he had ran, the each side would win exactly 50% of the time without the help of either god.

If thiis Battle is between the gods, let them fight without assistance or deterrents from humanity.

If this battle was to decide the Fate of Humanity, then let Fate decide which path Humanity would lead.

"We're stuck in the middle already Roman. Humanity happens to be their battlefield and we're the pieces they're playing with. After These Beasts had watched humanity's sufferings the past five thousand years, do you still call them your God? Where was the Crimson Dragon when plagues roamed the land? When the flu took millions of lives? When slums became the norm rather than the exception after the last war? When I toiled and starved in the Satellite? Or when Professor Fudo was blown to a thousand pieces and begged for death all the while?"

"So you think you'll pray for mercy from the Ruler of the Netherworld?" Roman laughed derisively. No one knew the nature of that beast better than him, and Rex truly is insane if he thinks the Darker of the two gods were a better Ruler for this world.

"Of course not." Rex replied immediately, "I have no intent in establishing either Creatures to their reign."

He would have gladly worshiped at the feet of anything that would bring peace and prosperity to humanity.

The Ruler of the Netherworld isn't that god.

Neither is the Crimson Dragon.

"Humanity hardly needs you as its god!" Roman exclaimed in disbelief as he finally understood Rex's implications.

"Humanity hardly needs the gods it has." Rex rebuked

"If I were the sole bearer of the Mark of the Crimson Dragon and the Ruler of the Netherworld, they would have no choice but to channel their powers through me. With that power, I could reshape humanity to the way we've always dream of! For once, that power would actually be used for good!"

"You're insane." Roman asserted with a resigned finality.

"Change doesn't originate from hopes, dreams or willpower, brother. To exact change, to be the change you want to see," Rex chuckled at the cliched expression, "You need power. Andvnow I'm finally at a position to get that power. I can change this world. I can right every wrong we've ever seen, transformed this world just like I've transformed Neo Domino. I could shape humanity into the way it was meant to be!" Rex did indeed have an insane look in his eyes, "All I need is both gods under my control!"

"How do you know I won't stop you? You may have won the duel, but right now, you're not nearly as strong as you might think." Roman answered.

"And what are you going to do, o brother mine? Kill me?" Rex beamed up at his big brother with an almost coquettish grin, having complete faith in the other man's concern for him. He waved his intact right arm in front of Roman mockingly, on it was the off-pink shape of a vulture, the markings of Earthbound Immortal Wiraqocha Rasca. Roman had instinctively given it to him to save his life.

Roman paused to weigh that option seriously before discarding it almost immediately. Humanity might be at stake, but there was no way he would murder his little brother to save it. What did he care about the human race if Rex wasn't part of it?

"This is too dangerous." Roman said finally. "For you."

"I made a deal with the Devil just to get out of the Satellite," Rex shrugged, "I have nothing left to lose."

* * *

 **A/N:** I really liked the Goodwins' scene in the anime, it offered quite a bit of depth to Roman's character in less than a minute. Roman's surprise and dismay at having won the duel with Rex was very suggestive of his true plans.

I went a bit further with that.

As you might have already noticed, I'm rather fond of Roman Goodwin. He's the sane Dark Signer, and one of the few people in the show whose actions mostly make sense. I did always feel like the Dark Signers' decks were frankly pathetic relative to the amount of resources they had. Roman literally had 17 years, during which he had the support of an evil demi god and the power to brainwash people, and his only job was to get good cards and good duelists. He still ended up recruiting 2 people (Carly and Greiger) at the last minute. He's either the worst procrastinator in YGO or he's got something else on his mind.

Plus, the people whom he presumably recruited first, Devak and Misty, both sucked at the only thing they needed to be good at, children's card games. They lost miserably to people like Yusei who had to, you know, survive. Or Akiza, for whom card games never really were a priority. Or even Leo and Luna, ten-year olds with homework and school and the inherent handicap of being ten years old. It must take some talent to be that bad at a children's card game.

When he recruited Carly in the anime, I took it as a sign he just didn't want to win. XD

Anyway, I took the idea and ran with it. I thought it really explains the Signers' victories better than dumb luck.

 **A/N 2:** Also, does anybody know what Luna's last name is? I have half a mind to name her Luna Lovegood LOL

 **A/N 3** : Happy Halloween! XD If the Satellite actually celebrated Halloween and took it seriously. Halloween content has been taken down owing to the fact it is no longer Halloween, what's more, I'm completely out of candy.


	50. Earthbound Immortal Ccarayhua

**Disclaimer:** I don't own ygo 5ds

* * *

Roman have always had a Messiah complex, Rex mused, rolling his eyes childishly into the back of his head as far as it would go. His big brother just has to play the hero, even though both of them knew it was only pretend.

For all of Roman's indignation, he was still the one who had fallen to the Shadows, and for good reason. Roman is greedy. Always had been. It wasn't enough that he was part of professor Fudo's team, his unqualified little brother had to be too. It wasn't enough that he had the mark of the Crimson Dragon, he needed the Other. It wasn't enough for Rex to fight for the Light, Roman wanted to manipulate both the paths of Light and Darkness, even after he had fallen victim to the Ruler of the Netherworld.

In this little setup he's got, either the Ruler of the Netherworld wins and Roman lives to serve his Lord. Or the Crimson Dragon wins and Romans gets the satisfaction of knowing he saved the world; and of course, all the glory his younger brother would undoubtedly pile onto him after his death.

He was so fearful of his derailing his own pathetic plans he was careful to pick exactly the ones whom would pose no threat to him, the ones whom he would easily keep under his thumb. Therefore understandably, none of them were too bright. He's expecting his little brother to fall in line just like the rest.

But Rex had no plans of playing the pawn in somebody else's grand design, whether that plan belonged to a mythical beast, Yliaster, or his own older brother. He had had enough powerlessness to last him a lifetime. Soon, he would be the god that reigns over this dimension. After all, only a human can understand what Humanity needs. He had witnessed countless horrors, suffering, pain, death. Humanity's endless cycles of self-destruction cannot be permitted to perpetuate lest it leads to the doom of this species and this world, as Yliaster foretold it would.

Humanity needs a Savior.

Humanity needs him.

Rex let the door slam behind him as he stepped onto the bridge leading away from Dark Signer's lair, side-stepping the amorphous pool of energy as they lapped at his feet, leaving Roman in the darkness still clutching at trading cards.

* * *

Chaos' duel runner screeched to a stop at the pier, where Fudo and Izinski were finishing up yet another tag duel with the Sector. According to the reports he received, Lazar had tricked them into these duels by promising to let both into Neo Domino if they can defeat the Sector Officers in their way, _every_ Sector Officer in their way. The pair had just defeated four people in their last duel, but neither looked victorious, it seems like they finally realized the Sector's tactics as well. Lazar had gathered Sector agents here to stall for time. Regardless of their individual victories, the Sector has enough people to keep them here for 24 hours at least, by then, everything would be too late, for the fight with Dark Signers and for that little girl Luna.

Not that the pair ever had a choice- it's a concession to a ridiculous demand when you're a lone hero struggling against the bylaws of your local authoritarian municipal government (Yuki's words, not his). Security agents armed with actual weapons kept a close eye on Izinski, ensuring her cooperation with these games instead of physically forcing her way into Neo Domino.

Residents of the Satellite have gathered to watch their duels as the spectacles it is, public duels were always entertaining for the audience regardless of the participants or what was at stake.

"Izinski," Chaos interrupted, "Fudo. Let's go, we don't have time to waste on games likes these."

"Chaos!" Yusei looked up hopefully at their visitor, "Leo and Luna are trapped in Neo Domino. That monster we saw in the sky, that was Luna asking us for help!" Yusei said as though Chaos didn't know that, presumably assuming anybody who knew would be trying to break into Neo Domino like he was.

"The Satellite needs your help, the half a million people from the Satellite needs you. The existence of the entire world may be on the line," Chaos said flatly, lowering his voice as he approached the pair, wary of onlookers, "You both know this, why are you wasting your time on saving one or two people when the stakes are infinitely greater?"

"I won't let my friends down, I can get Luna and Leo out to safety and come back in time for my fight against the Dark Signers." Yusei insisted.

Chaos snorted. He couldn't believe Fudo actually had the nerve to look hurt, fixating on his foolish principles against all logic. He's heard enough about Fudo to know just what he had in mind. The kid was no doubt planning on facing off against large groups of sector agents at once in hopes of defeating all of them in time. Trying to beat Lazar at his own, heavily-stacked game.

Thankfully, Chaos no longer had to resort to such desperate measures.

He glanced at the crowd, a blue-haired man in his twenties walked out.

"I'll duel the Sector, Chaos-sama" Lenny said. "If the Sector is trying to keep you here, they must be trying to stop you from helping the Satellite."

Twisted logic, but it's generally accepted by the public here.

"So I'll do my part, however small it might be. I'll duel the Sector." He repeated.

Chaos nodded with a small smirk.

"I'll duel the sector too!" A purple-haired girl stepped out from the crowd, Chaos recognized her as one of the kids he had hired when Zephyrs started their assembly line, "I won't let the Sector destroy what we have here."

"Count me in, Yusei!" A red-haired kid in a yellow hat shouted. Chaos thought he (she?) looked vaguely familiar, what was his name, Reggie? Relly? "Even if it means being arrested by the Sector!"

"Nobody is getting arrested by the Sector," Chaos was startled at things going a little off script, but he continued reciting his lines to reassure the general public, "Not while our security forces are still around." He gestured to the squadrons stationed around the area. Not enough to duel (god forbid) all of the Sector, but enough to provide these satellites with a sense of security.

"I'll duel the Sector." Lug squeezed his way out of the crowd, finally getting to say his lines.

Chaos waited patiently and saw the expected flux of satellites valiantly volunteering themselves for some harmless children's card games.

"We don't have an army like yours," He turned to address the Sector, "But we have this town on our side. If you want to duel Fudo and Izinski, you have to get through all of us first!"

"You're really loved in the Satellite," Yusei said as he watched pedestrians who had nothing to do with these games walk into duels with Sector Security on his behalf, on the Zephyrs' behalf. He felt his face flush and his heart speed up, this was what he had fought for as an Enforcer, to protect the Town they love and in turn be loved and protected by it. The Enforcers never got anywhere close.

Yuki might have said something like ' _We_ are really loved in the Satellite', or some crap like that to get Fudo's loyalty, but Chaos' didn't want that. Frankly, he despised the kid.

"That should speed things up," Chaos ignored Fudo's comment, deciding to omit the harmless little stunt he pulled. "Come back to headquarters, you can defeat the winner when this finishes."

If not Fudo, at least Izinski should come in handy.

* * *

Jack entered the dimly-lit room with a flourish, his entourage following closely behind. Yuki was the first person he wanted to see in the Satellite, he couldn't stand for the woman who defeated him to be in such a pathetic state. And it was indeed a sorry sight.

Yuki laid awkwardly on a loveseat, with her head on one side, one leg resting on the other armrest and one leg on the floor. She was either staring intently at the television or had fallen asleep with her eyes open, the television was blaring some shopping channel, with the announcer passionately promoting bulk purchases of potatoes and corn. If she had heard them coming in, Jack certainly couldn't tell.

"Jack..." Mina prodded his arm hesitantly, worried he might approach this in a typical Jack-Atlas fashion. She was the one who told Jack about Yuki's recent glum, on Goodwin's orders in an attempt for Jack to challenge Yuki again. This was before they found out Luna was a Signer. Director Goodwin had withdrawn his order since then, but Jack has gone on charging at full steam.

"Yuki, snap out of it!" Jack demanded.

"Huh?" I started, grateful to have been woken up from yet another nightmare, this one involving me as a duel monster card, inside a pile of cards that had just caught on fire, with Greiger still shooting our way. Sometimes my overactive imagination works against me.

"Hey guys," I stifled a yawn as I greeted Jack, Mina, Carly and Trudge. Weird, normally somebody would let me know before they let people in. Or maybe they did and I wasn't paying attention? I have been drifting in and out of sleep since last night. "Snap of out what?" I looked towards him blankly, trying to disguise my disorientation as nonchalance. I can't appear weak right now, least of all in front of Goodwin's employees.

"Look, I'm sorry about what happened," Jack said gruffly, "But you can't stay like this. You have to take charge again, get back onto the field. You don't belong on the sidelines, you never have. This, this is pathetic!"

"Sector keeps taps on the Satellite," Mina offered helpfully.

I nodded graciously, glad to see the human side of Jack, human for Jack at least. But I mean, I think I know what I'm doing.

"I can understand how hard it must have been hard for you, losing your cards like that." He continued.

"Thank- wait what?"

"I missed the chance to duel you while you were at your best, but I'll wait for you to build a deck again then we can duel again."

"No, wait, back up. You're sorry because I lost my deck?" I sputtered, now fully awake, "Not that I was shot and could had died and may have been critically injured, but you're sorry I lost my deck?"

"And that you missed a chance to duel with me while you were at your best." Jack added hastily, as though embarrassed by having acted like what he imagines to be a decent human being. "But you'll build another deck, and we can duel again. You built a winning deck from scratch once, you can do it again. Then we can play again and I can defeat you!"

Yep, that's definitely Jack's version of pleasant human interaction. Flattery even.

"Um, thanks Jack." With my elbow prodded against the table, I rested my head in my hands, feeling the veins on my forehead pop, "But maybe throw in something about me almost being dead next time. I think it'll help your delivery."

"What's she talking about?" Jack turned to Carly, who laughed, shaking her head indulgently.

"Life's cheap here, Tono, you of all people should know. That's how you got thousands of people in this trashheap of a town to follow along in your little schemes with nothing but empty promises." Trudge interjected rudely, shrugging. "I guarantee you, every single one of them are a thousand times more sorry for the loss of your cards than your life. With your old deck, any average Joe can keep this little operation going. Now that you lost your deck, the entire Satellite is a sitting duck. Nobody cares about your personal pity party, they're probably all wishing Greiger had had better aim, then the Sector wouldn't be closing in right now.

"Trudge!" Mina reprimanded. Trudge took a step back to stand by the door instead, looking a little defiant though he didn't say a word.

"Yuki, we were sent here by Director Goodwin to discuss the situation with Dark Signers," Mina took the lead, reading me no doubt to see how I reacted to Trudge's comment.

"Goodwin says he reached a deal with his brother," Jack said recklessly, ignoring Mina and Trudge's astonished looks, "Each Dark Signer would wait to defeat each of the Signers at an assigned location. That way, we end this whole thing once and for all, fair and square!"

Jack always had that confident naivety that I both envy and ridicule, but if that's what Rex wants me to believe...

"Sure, let me get my team together and we can discuss this." Where is everybody anyway?

* * *

"Who are you?" Misty questioned suspiciously, studying the blue-haired woman in front of her, that's definitely not Yuki Tono.

She stood in the alley of the worst, and most populous part of Satellite, surrounded by mortals and duel monsters alike. The power radiating from her nearly solidified into visible light.

Misty was determined to avenge her brother's death at Akiza and Sayer's hands, it just worked out perfectly that Akiza was the Signer she was set out to destroy. Instead of waiting at the location Roman gave her, she had impatiently ventured out on her own to find her enemies. Though she quickly met a not-unexpected problem... She couldn't find the enemies she was looking for. She couldn't find anybody. This is no longer the age of Internet, it's not even the age of radio. It's actually fairly difficult locating complete strangers when you can't follow them on Twitter or Instagram. So even though Akiza was being surrounded by a couple of hundred people just across town, Misty had no idea.

Instead, she decided to follow Greiger's advice and enlist the Zephyrs for help.

"Felice." The woman said shortly, then added with a placating smile, "You're that Dark Signer Misty, right? You wouldn't happen to know where Vincent is, would you?" Felice had volunteered to parole the city hoping to find her friend, so when the Zephyrs security tried to contact anyone in charge to report Misty's activities, she was the closest to the incident.

"Zephyrs will help me find Akiza Izinski and Sayer," Misty completely ignored Felice's request, "If you want this town to survive."

"Guess not." Felice erased the smile from her face, it was worth a try."I'm not here to cut a deal. We don't make deals with people like you, and we certainly won't be threatened." As Yuki had discussed previously, they can't afford to compromise with every thug that threatens to cause some sort of social unrest, it'll only set an example and encourage more people to follow suit.

"Then what are you here for?" Misty asked, surprised a mortal would stand up to a Dark Signer.

"I'm here to defeat you," Felice replied, "Obviously."

"A mortal, against an emissary of the gods?" Misty giggled, "Are you sane? I will crush you in a duel!"

"You're looking to duel Akiza, right? Why don't we duel first? If you defeat me, I'll bring you to her." Felice offered helpfully. Their general strategy remains to defeat as many Dark Signers as possible with card games and reserve Izinski in case any of these people aren't satisfied with a duel fought with holograms alone.

"I'm looking to destroy Akiza, for the misery she wrought on my brother and my family." Misty corrected. She paused, her challenged looked barely twenty years old, certainly young to die in a game like this. "Nothing will stop me on my path to vengeance, stand aside if you want to live."

"Let's duel!" Felice locked the Dark Signer into a duel as quickly as she could- Dark Signers not in duels are liable to summon real monsters instead. Purple Nazca lines appeared in thin air, extending on the charred Satellite soil to form the rough outline of a lizard, separating both duelists from the Zephyrs security forces that guarded the area.

X

 **Turn 1: Misty's Turn; Felice 4000 Misty 4000**

"Very well, I'll start!" Misty drew her first card. As soon as she did so, purple flames rose out of the ground in the shape of a giant lizard, enveloping them both in its cold light, separating the duelists from the Zephyrs security team outside. "I'll begin with the field spell, Labyrinth of Mirrors! Now you can know what I feel like, searching for answers in an endless maze that looks exactly the same every step of the way."

"Oh for god's sake." Felice muttered under her breath. What's with these people who thinks each card need a backstory? Do they design their decks based on card effect or how well each card ties into their autobiography?

"Next, I set one monster face-down." Misty obviously didn't hear her opponent's sidebar commentaries, "I play the spell card, Sad Story- Sorrowful Memories! Now that this card is on the field, any monster cards we draw are automatically reshuffled into the deck. And thus begins my tragic saga. My brother Toby had disappeared after he was recruited into the Arcadian Movement, according to all the official records, it's like he never existed. But I know the truth, I know it was Sayer and Akiza who had..."

Misty trailed off.

It must be really lonely being a Dark Signer, Felice reflected a little absentmindedly, for somebody to tell her life story to a stranger like this. Roman Goodwin probably isn't a good listener. Still, that's no excuse to leave a monster with 100 attack on the field.

 **Turn 2: Felice's Turn; Felice 4000 Misty 4000**

"I draw." Felice drew and showed her hand, "Card Destruction. Perfect, I think I'll play that right now. Since this is not our normal draw phase, my spell isn't affected. Next, I summon, **Garoth, the Lightsworn Warrior (1850/1000)**. Garoth, attack and destroy Misty's facedown monster!"

The knight charged, he sliced in vain into the back of the card. Misty's **Reptillianne Gardna (lv4, 0/2000)** was flipped face up.

"I'll place one card facedown and end my turn." Felice announced.

 **Turn 3: Misty's Turn; Felice 3850 Misty 4000**

"My turn!" Misty revealed the card she drew, "Sad Story- Unwavering Truth, this spell card makes sure we shuffle all spell cards we draw back into our decks. Welcome to part two of my sad story. The last trace of my brother I could find was at the Neo Domino dock. He was a big fan of that witch Akiza. The day he went to the docks to see her, that was also the day she lost control. I never saw my brother again after that."

Misty stayed quiet for a second before speaking again, her voice breaking just slightly, "I vowed I would find him, even if it's only his body. He must be scared out there all alone, I have to bring him home!"

"My condolences," Felice said awkwardly, she had no trouble imagining the Black Rose on a killing spree. Izinski's got her strengths but her powers and psychological issues just weren't a good combo. Not that she wasn't sympathetic, she had gotten used to tragedies growing up in the Satellite. One or two deaths just doesn't affect her as it would someone who grew up in privilege. Still... "If you know how hard it is to lose someone, how can you fight for the Dark Signers? Every time an Earthbound Immortal is summoned, hundreds of people are taken again. They're all somebody brother, sister, parent, child. How can you do this to them, when you've gone through the same thing yourself?"

"I have to find my brother, no matter what the cost." Misty deadpanned, "The Ruler of the Netherworld is the only thing that can grant me enough powers to do so."

"That cost shouldn't be somebody else's brother," Felice said after a long pause to select the least offensive answer she could think of, biting back the 'hypocrite' and other such comments. Every time any Earthbound Immortal is summoned, hundreds of people from the Satellite is sacrificed as this 'cost'.

"I have exhausted all other ways of obtaining my revenge, who else can I turn to except the Ruler of the Netherworld?" Misty shot back, irritated at the thinly veiled accusation. "I play Dark Eruption, allowing me to bring back Reptilianne Viper and Reptilianne Vaskii to my hand. Next, I'll activate a trap, Ojama trio, to summon three Ojama tokens onto your field!"

Felice looked on curiously, looks like this Dark Signer has something up her sleeves after all.

"Now, I summon **Reptilianne Viper (lv2, tuner, 0/0)** and tune her with Reptilianne Gardna to synchro summon- from the depths of the jungle hails the ultimate predator- **Reptilianne Hydra (lv6, 2100/1500)**. Her effects destroys all monsters with 0 attack on your side of the field and I get to draw a card for every card she destroys, I count three. And allow me to remind you, when Ojama tokens are destroyed, they deal you 300 damage each!"

Felice grunted as she felt the impact of the attack. Shadow duels were every bit as taxing as the rumors claim.

Now, Reptilianne Hydra, destroy her Warrior! Venomous Blockade!"

"Activate trap, Lightsworn Barrier! By sending two cards from my deck to my graveyard, I can block your attack." Felice smirked, that trap has never failed her before.

"I shall place two more cards face down and end my turn." Misty announced.

 **Turn 4: Felice's Turn; Felice** ** **3850** Misty 4000**

"I drew Charge of the Light Brigade," Felice showed the card to Misty and placed the card back to the deck.

"Now I summon **Lyna, the Lightsworn Summoner (lv3, 1000/1000)** and I activate her special effect. I discard from my hand Dawn Knight to bring back **Raiden, Hand of the Lightsworn (lv4, 1700/1000)** to my field. I activate his effect to discard two cards to the graveyard. Garoth's effects activates, allowing me to discard two more cards to the graveyard from my deck. Since one of those cards is a Lightsworn monster, I get to draw one card!"

"Now, I tune my lv3 Lyna with my Lv4 Raiden to synchro summon, the bane of evil and defender of light, **Michael, the Arch Lightsworn (lv7, 2600/2000).** His effect also lets me banish one card on the field, and I choose your field spell, Labyrinth of Light.

On reflection, Felice still doesn't know what the field spell actually does, but getting rid of it served a different purpose. All Earthbound Immortals require a field card in order to have their full powers, without them, these otherwise fearsome beasts are just normal monsters with a higher attack. The mirrors that surrounded her shattered into a thousand shreds, disappearing back into the darkness from whence it came. Once again out in the open, Felice could just make out the faint outlines of the Zephyrs team outside Nazca lines.

"Michael, attack and destroy Reptilianne Hydra!" Felice commanded.

"You wouldn't dare!" Misty's face twisted in anger. Felice studied Misty's empty field thoughtfully, it seems designing your deck to revolve around a backstory isn't very efficient.

"Next, Garoth, attack Misty directly"! Felice commanded again instead of answering her question.

"Activate, **Scapegoat**!" At Misty's words, four fluffy sheep-shaped tokens appeared on the field in defense mode. Garoth destroyed a sheep token before she ended her turn.

"Michael sends 3 cards per turn to the graveyard, and because one of them is **Felis, the Lightsworn Archer (lv4, 1100/2000)** , I get to bring him to the field. Garoth's ability activates also, one of the two cards he sent to the grave is Jain, the Lightsworn Paladin, so I get to draw another card."

Felice trailed off as she saw comprehension dawn on Misty's face. "No, I didn't choose the deck because of the name of one monster," She answered before a question was posed. "I don't play for sentimental reasons, I play to win."

 **Turn 5: Misty's Turn; Felice 2750 Misty 3400**

"The card I drew was Reptillianne Gorgon (lv3, 1400/1400), I now return her to my deck." Misty barely acknowledged Felice's explanation or even looked at the card she drew, "And activate the last card in my trilogy, Sad Story- Atrocious Day! Now any monster, spell or trap cards we draw during our draw phase will be shuffled back into our decks."

"Well?" Felice prompted when the Dark Signer didn't continue, "What's the last part of your story?"

"I don't know yet," Misty replied, "My story isn't finished, I still have to make Akiza and Sayer pay for what they did. My Atrocious Day will probably be the day I find Toby."

Felice smiled ruefully at her implications.

"Time to move on from this part of my story so I can get to the end." Misty pointed to her facedown card, "I activate my trap card, Sorrowful Chain. When I control all three cards in this Sorrowful Story series, I can special summon **Dragon Queen of Tragic Endings (lv6, 1900/2600)** from my deck. Next, I special summon **Reptilianne Vaskii (lv8, 2600/0)** from my hand by tributing two scapegoat tokens. With her special ability, I can destroy Michael, the Arch Lightsworn!"

A beam of green light sliced into the white dragon on Felice's field, enveloping him and dragging him down to the bottomless abyss below.

"I place one card face down and end my turn." Misty announced. She saw no point in further attacks until she could get rid of Felice's Lightsworn Barrier trap card.

 **Turn 6: Felice's Turn; Felice 2750 Misty 3400**

Felice drew and replaced Solar Recharge into her deck, taking a deep breath, she braced herself. It's time to invite Misty's Earthbound Immortal onto the field.

"I'll start my turn by playing the field spell, Realm of Light!"

"Next, I tribute Felis to destroy Reptilianne Vaskii." Felice watched as the archer turned to dust, taking Misty's reptile with him. "Raiden's effect activates, allowing me to discard two cards to the graveyard, this triggers Garoth's effect to discard two more cards to the graveyard. Since Lyna the Lightsworn Summoner was discarded, I can draw one card from the deck."

"I tune my lv 4 Raiden with my lv 4 Garoth to synchro summon, the light that pierces through darkness, **Light-End Dragon (lv8, 2600/2100)**. By her effect, I increase her attack by 500 and decrease the attack of your dragon queen by 1500, down to a mere 400 points!"

"Light End Dragon, destroy Dragon Queen of Tragic Endings, Shining Sublimation!"

The attack also destroyed 2700 of Misty's life points. She hissed in pain, her teeth clenched against the attack. In a Shadow Duel, neither player is not immune to the pain it inflicts, Dark Signer or not.

"I'll place one more card face down and end my turn," Felice gestured for Misty to continue, "Make your move."

 **Turn 7: Misty's Turn; Felice 2750 Misty 700**

"I return Reptilianne Medusa to my deck," Misty began her turn. "You played well, Felice. But I'm afraid you made a mistake by playing that field card, and this mistake will cost you your life. Thanks to the spell Reptilianne Spawn, I special summon two **Reptilianne Tokens (lv2, 0/0)** by banishing Reptilianne Gardna from my graveyard. O God which resuscitated our lives, now I offer you my soul! Come to me, **Earthbound Immortal Ccarayhua (lv10, 2800/1800)**!"

A black hole appeared in midair, a vague figure could be seen trying to emerge from it. Hundreds of strands of purple light rose from the Satellite and fed into the growing gap in the sky, Felice knew each was a life in the Satellite. Finally, a lizard-shaped monster standing on its hind legs emerged and landed on the ground with a thud. The mortal realm is broken into by yet another Earthbound Immortal, thanks to the efforts of those who once had been mortal.

"Earthbound Immortals can attack directly and they're not affected by any of your spells or trap cards. one attack and you're finished!" Misty cackled. She no longer looked like the grief-ridden women seeking revenge against those who tore her family apart. She looked, for lack of a better word, crazy. "This is the end of your story, for now and forever. Earthbound Immortal Ccarayhua, attack Felice and finish this duel!"

"I banish Necro Gardna from my graveyard to negate your attack." Felice announced calmly. Of course she was prepared for the attack before playing a field spell.

"Any move you make merely delays your inevitable death," Misty paused to examine Felice's graveyard, there're still two Necro Gardnas inside. She huffed in annoyance. "I also send Sad Story- Sorrowful Days to the graveyard to bring **Dragon Queen of Tragic Endings** back from the dead in defense mode! It's time for me to leave my sorrowful days behind me, so I can start afresh from the dead!"

Oh great, this stuff again. Felice scratched her head, trying not to look bored. Just as she was impressed by Misty's skills, she brings up this delusions of reference stuff up again.

 **Turn 8: Felice's Turn; Felice 2750 Misty 700**

"I play a spell card," Felice said after returning the trap card Solemn Warning back to the deck, "Soul Charge. By paying 1000 life points, I special summon **Michael, the Arch Lightsworn** back to the field. I pay another 1000 life points to activate his effects and banish your immortal from the field!"

As she had hoped, as soon as the Immortal was banished from the field, the markings on Misty's face also disappeared. The Nazca lines surrounding the duel wavered as though about to go out any second.

"Whew, let's stop the duel, what do you say?" Felice offered with a grin. Misty will have to go to jail for threatening civilians and the damage she caused, but Felice conveniently forgot to mention that part for now. Also Zephyrs didn't have a jail yet, but she'll figure something out.

"Stop the duel?" Misty repeated. She didn't seem to be controlled by the Ruler of the Netherworld anymore, but her tone did not change. "You forget, I started this duel looking for answers, Dark Signer or not, I will get my revenge on Sayer and Akiza for what they did to my brother!"

"Well," Felice hesitated, but decided to be honest anyway, "I mean, you're about to lose, right? Even if you go to jail, it's still better than dying, right?"

At Misty's confused look, Felice elaborated.

"Yeah, we're gonna probably try you for destruction of public property or something. And you might end up in jail for a while, I don't know how long yet." Felice briefly wondered who's job it is to decide on a sentence, seeing as they didn't have a court, or a judge or anyone who really understands law, but decided to save those questions for later.

Misty smiled at her words, it was refreshing to hear something so... mundane, after everything that had happened.

"You have an odd way of convincing people," Misty replied. "And a very odd way of, I guess you think you're helping me?"

"You might not believe it, but this is Justice." Felice shrugged, explaining her own interpretation of the idea, "To have a legal system where the punishment fits the crime, where everyone is equal in the face of the law. To make sure an impartial set of laws are carried out regardless of how powerful or helpless the perpetrator is. Justice is the only way to ensure Order, and Order is exactly what the Satellite needs right now."

"What about Sayer and Akiza then?" Misty demanded. "If I were to concede this duel, can you ensure that they are met with the same Justice you claim to defend? Can you grant me the Justice I seek?"

Well... Felice hesitated. Justice against Sayer, sure; she had no doubt he would be tried to the fullest extent of the law (after they've made up some random laws probably just to try him). Izinski, on the other hand, had proven herself to be quite useful to their group; more importantly, she's fairly likeable as a person, after you get past the destructive side. Even if Felice were presiding over the case, if Yuki stands in as a character witness, Felice can't promise her own judgement wouldn't be skewed.

Everybody is equal in the eyes of the law, Felice is beginning to understand how some people may be more equal than others.

"Can you do it?" Will you do it?" Misty asked again.

"I guarantee an unbiased investigation and if there is enough evidence, we'll give them both a fair trial. I can't guarantee the result, that's not for me to decide." Fudo, Yusei Fudo is probably the best person for the job, Felice felt a light bulb going off in her head. If half of the things they say about him is true, that kid is as honest as they make 'em.

"So no." Misty interpreted her hesitation as a lie, she spoke quietly but firmly. "I have had enough of these 'unbiased investigations, but I know Sayer and Akiza's guilt regardless of what your 'investigations' claim. It seems that there is no justice except that which I obtain by my own hands. Let's finish this duel!" The purple Nazca lines had shrank to barely knee-high. Now with Misty's mind made-up, it grew stronger, surrounding both duelists in its cold glow.

Felice had two cards in her hand and a level 8 synchro dragon on her field. Misty only had Dragon Queen of Tragic Endings. Misty isn't looking to win anymore, she simply wants to bring an ending to her story.

"Fine then, I activate the effects of Electromagnetic Pulse Attack!" Felice commanded before the Nazca lines could shield them both from the outside world again.

"I'm not familiar with the card," Misty noted with her characteristic nonchalance.

"It's not really a card," Felice grinned apologetically. The Zephyrs security that had surrounded the duel since the beginning trained their guns at Misty, and shot her down before she could utter another protest.

* * *

 **A/N:** I didn't end up deleting the Halloween thing, moved it to the end of the last chapter.


	51. Cause and Effect

**Disclaimer** : I don't own YGO 5Ds

* * *

Galen didn't need to search too far to find Vincent, he knows the man better than the back of his hand. At the time, Vincent had intrigued him, and he had kept close tabs on the man ever since he first heard of him five years ago.

Satellite seems to have an endless supply of heroes. Each new generation of naive teenagers eager to take their place in the spotlight, lying in wait until the old batch is washed up, only to be replaced by whatever group comes after. Right now it's Yuki, 2 years ago it was Team Satisfaction. 5 years ago, it had been the Magicians, or rather, Vincent Foxwell. Theirs was a much simpler story, without magic, monsters, Destiny or even involvement of the Director of Neo Domino City. Simple, common, and a tale as old as time.

Vincent wasn't much smarter than Chaos back then. It takes aspecial kind of stupid for a single teenager to adopt three kids and raise them as his own. By the time Teddy turned 8, Vincent decided those three were old enough to fend for themselves, so he was free to devote the rest of his life to what he loved, the people of the Satellite.

Galen was just finishing up grade school back then, and the public school teachers belittled Vincent as they do all Satellite rebels. By the growing venom in their words, Galen could tell Vincent was really getting somewhere with the population. Maybe somebody in the Sector got fed up, maybe a bureaucrat somewhere was concerned or maybe the Vice Director decided the protests are beginning to affect his publicity, whatever it was, Vincent was arrested on the truly innovative charge of 'Interfering with Public Safety'.

Rewards were offered to satellites who would testify to Vincent's various criminal activities in the Satellite, the Sector described it as a reward for their courage. Many rewards were collected by satellites who testified. None showed up to testify on Vincent's behalf. Felice and Cyril shouldered as much of the blame as they could, and Neo Domino was happy to oblige. Divided between the three of them, they only got 3-5 years each. The Sector was more than pleased to have Vincent back into the Satellite as living proof of what happens to rebels.

As it is, Vincent has very few places to go that doesn't bring up bad memories.

"You're a not hard man to find, buddy." Galen hit the brakes on his duel runner, stopping directly in front of Vincent. "Now that I got you, let's duel! You owe me a _real_ duel after that ridiculous game you played with Yuki."

"I have better things to do with my time than playing with you, I'm looking for Atlas," Vincent dismissed.

"To defeat him? You know when all Signers are defeated, the Ruler of the Netherworld would rise to destroy this world!" Galen pressed, "Even if you don't care about us, what about Felice, Cyril and Teddy?"

"Roman promised to convince them to leave the Satellite with me after I destroy Atlas. As for the new era, the other Magicians would be safe under my protection," Vincent replied. Roman's power to 'convince' people was legendary. "So if you don't mind, I want to get out of this dump yesterday."

"You'll have to get through me first!" Galen challenged.

"I really don't." Vincent deadpanned, he lifted his duel disk, but instead of agreeing to the duel request, summoned a monster. A blue cloth-armor emerged from the ground, easily swiping Galen aside, allowing its master passage.

"Wait!" Galen called out, dusting himself off as he got up again, "Do you really trust Roman?"

"I trust you even less than I do Roman." Vincent replied without a hint of sarcasm.

"There is a plane near our old dorms, the rest of the Magicians will be waiting for us there. Duel me, defeat me. When you do, that plane will land in Neo Domino." Galen adjusted his strategy accordingly.

"See, I don't trust you because you say crap like this," Vincent discarded the solemn demeanor of the Dark Signers, reverting back to his old Satellite self, "what the heck are you talking about?"

"Industrial Illusions gave us a plane the other day," Galen explained with a sheepish laugh, realizing the lack of context in his previous offer, "As a sign of good will after they tried to kidnap Chaos again." Actually, they tried to kidnap Cyril and Felice, who were responsible for production and sales respectively, but Galen decided it's probably not a good idea to set Vincent off right now.

"Anyway, so we did some Momentum testings on top of their headquarters, then they send us a bunch of stuff. Yuki even got a couple of blank cards, they said we could design it however we like."

"Nice!" Vincent said automatically, before remembering he was a Dark Signer, "I mean, whatever. Let's go, I'll play you when we get there."

X

Most of my team, by which I mean those who didn't have anything to do and bothered to show up, were gathered around Mina in our Duel Simulator as she explained the plan to defeat the Dark Signers, Rex Goodwin's plan to defeat the Dark Signers.

"Every five thousand years, the Crimson Dragon," Mina began.

"We all know about this already, Mina" Jack interrupted, "Get to the point, we have no time to waste."

"Every five thousand years," Mina huffed, glaring at Jack, then continued, "the Crimson Dragon battles with the Ruler of the Netherworld via their proxies, the Signers and Dark Signers. The Zero Reverse incident had tore open a portal between our world and the world of the Shadows, and it has grown large enough that the Ruler of the Netherworld may cross over very soon."

"How soon is that?" I asked skeptically.

"I don't know," Mina replied, "It could be hours, days or weeks. I don't think Director Goodwin knows either. But the only way to prevent the Ruler of the Netherworld from entering ours is to defeat all Dark Signers."

I nodded, Kalin mentioned something like that before.

"At each corner of the Satellite, will be a tower, each tower will only be unlocked by a Signer Dragon. After the towers are unlocked, the Dark Signer guarding that tower will emerge. We must secure all the towers to stop the Netherworld monster!"

I couldn't help chuckling. Mina had summarized the situation extremely well, all the better to illustrate the absurdity of the situation. The entire thing sounds like a video game: go to assigned location with required item (usually a specific card in the YGO universe), unlock duel opponent, defeat opponent, save the world. Of course, you heard all of that from a helpful NPC you barely know, but whose credibility you do not question (e.g. Mina).

Now that I think about it, I'm pretty sure more than one YGO game actually do follow this plot line.

While stuck in this world, it's hard to miss how utterly ridiculous Roman's setup had been.

"Not quite." Felice commented. She had rushed in just before the meeting and is now sitting crosslegged in her swivel chair. "I just defeated Misty while she was wandering around Satellite. She's one of the Dark Signers, right?"

"So Goodwin lied again," Cyril shrugged, "What else is new?"

I'm not so sure if Roman or Rex Goodwin are lying, since this was their plan from the anime. I'm not entirely sure if they changed their minds, or if the Dark Signers had gotten out of control. Either way, we hired enough scouts to locate Dark Signers anywhere in the Satellite. Scouts are easy to hire because they don't need to be literate, just being able to move quickly which most satellites have had a lot of practice doing. Most of our other positions have a number of vacancies, but that's another story.

"Um," Mina fidgeted nervously with the pendant on her new necklace in the shape of a large Red Dragon Archfiend, "maybe he made a mistake? But he's not lying, these duels really are very important!"

"Wherever they're hiding, we will find and defeat each Dark Signer," I agreed with Mina.

"Who's dueling Dark Signers?" Chaos pushed the door open roughly, letting it bang against the wall, not hiding his distaste at having acted the part of the babysitter, "What's Goodwin's lackeys doing here?"

"Jack?" Yusei followed inside, freezing when he saw our visitor.

"Hello, Yusei," Jack stood up, moving towards the man who used to be, no, still is his best friend.

"Welcome back!" Yusei took a couple of steps to close the distance between them and drew the blond into a bear hug.

Akiza slid past both of them, rolling her eyes. Only Yusei would forgive somebody after they betrayed him and got him thrown in jail. "Anyway," She coughed, turning towards Mina, "Luna and Leo are still trapped in the Satellite. Do you Goodwin lackeys know how to get them out?"

"Goodwin lackeys? Why you-" Trudge fumed, though quieted down at Mina's admonishing look.

"If I'm not mistaken, they're in Sayer's hands." Mina informed the Black Rose cautiously. Goodwin had given her complete access to all security information to be released at her discretion while she's in the Satellite, as long as she completes her missions. Since Luna is a Signer, she would need to be in the Satellite to defeat the Dark Signers. If the Black Rose wants to get her here, all the better.

"I have to go to Neo Domino," Akiza said tersely, pushing Jack into Yusei as she headed towards the exit again. At hearing Sayer's name, that's the only thing left on her mind. The room turned towards her, then quickly away. Akiza was the one who had set Sayer free after his capture, no doubt (arguably rightly) concerned what we would do to him if he fell into our hands again.

"Akiza..." Yusei trailed off at her determined look, and said instead, "I'll come with you."

Chaos snorted, Akiza spoke before he could say anything.

"Sayer, Arcadia, they are my cross to bear. For years, Arcadia was the only place I called home, Sayer was my only friend. If they need to be stopped, at least let me be the one to do it." She turned towards me, " You can reach me on my phone. I can get back in twenty minutes if I fly alone."

I must have looked reluctant, Akiza continued, "Yuki, please. I need to do this, for myself."

"Good luck." I relented. "I'll get Blizzard to contact Lazar and set things up from the other end in case you run into any trouble. At least for now, we're on the same side as Goodwin."

"You have _got_ to be kidding me," Chaos looked at me exasperatedly for letting Akiza leave when we might need her any second. "Kids," He muttered under his breath as he moved aside to let Akiza leav _e._

"We have to go too," Felice motioned to Cyril, "Galen just messaged me, he found Vincent. He wants us to meet him at our old place."

"I-" I hesitated. A couple of days ago, I would have insisted that I be the one to duel Vincent. I would have been the one who's most likely to keep him alive at the end of the duel. My heart raced at the thought of another duel, the palpitations were just enough to rattle my fractured rib cage uncomfortably.

"Why don't you stay here, Yuki," Felice tried and failed to hide her concern, "We need somebody in control at the headquarters anyway."

I nodded darkly as they left to face the evil I was supposed to defeat

* * *

"Hey, did you hear? The Factories are hiring!" Tank rushed into their cave, announcing the good news loudly.

Since Professor Zigzix's disappearance (the entire Satellite is confident he was murdered, though the suspects vary depending on who you ask), the pair had technically been unemployed. They were quick to use it as an excuse and get away from the Zephyrs before Sector Security closed in. Neither wanted to go back to working for Neo Domino, and the recent influx of business opportunities had kept them fairly well-off.

"The Factories are always hiring," Blitz dismissed, "What else is new?"

"No, I mean they're _really_ hiring! Good jobs! They're opening up positions to Satellites that were always off-limits, even management positions!" Tank declared, waving his arms around for emphasis, "Plus, they're paying almost double! _Double_ what they paid before!"

By payment, Tank is still referring to the different types of food and necessities Sector offers in lieu of an actual salary.

"Rally mentioned the Sector is cracking down on shipments too," Blitz replied with information of his own, "They doubled the taxes on all imports and have began to restrict none governmental sources of food coming into the Satellite. Neo Domino claims this is to prevent the rich in the Satellite from wasting money on luxuries to encourage them to invest in this town."

By luxuries, they mean meat and chocolate and fruits and vegetables and basically anything that isn't the acid cubes Neo Domino distributes but does not sell to private entities.

"I guess that makes sense," Tank nodded. Having grew up in a Satellite controlled by Neo Domino, he agrees with Neo Domino's definition of luxury for his hometown. "So if the Factories are paying more and Neo Domino is cutting down on shipments, you think it'll be worth it to go back to the Factories?"

"Why do you think Goodwin is doing this?" Blitz asked instead of answering his question.

"To compete with the Development in the Satellite, what else?" Tank replied without a second thought, "they need people in those factories so now they have to make it worthwhile for us!"

"Neo Domino has been doing charity work in the last couple of days," Blitz switched topics suddenly, "Sector Security is doing more around Satellite too, they're actually helping more people than they're arresting."

"So? That's a good thing, right?" Tank asked, confused at the serious expression on his friend's face.

"For us, sure." Blitz said thoughtfully.

* * *

"Are we still to hold our ground? The Crimson Dragon Wars have never progressed thusly, we're putting too much faith in Goodwin." A slender figure clad in white complained in a tone very unbecoming of his mysterious outfit.

"Z-One's orders," A smaller, similarly-dressed figure grumbled, "Sit this one out, see what happens. Nothing we can do about it."

"Have patience, Lester," The eldest of the three reprimanded, "We must bade our time."

"I'm tire of waiting, Jakob. We've let things go on for long enough," The first clocked figure asked more to himself than his colleagues. "If these satellites fail..."

"Then we blow up the Satellite and any entrance the Netherworld Monster has of coming into this world!" Lester replied in a disturbingly enthusiastic tone, "I say we should have done that owe begin with but _nooooo_ , Z-One doesn't want to mess with _this part_ of Fate. Primo, you've still got the detonator just in case, right?"

"Of course," Primo replied. "In the meantime, perhaps that clown in Neo Domino can provide us with some reassurance."

* * *

Just north of the Satellite, still fairly far away from the Facilities (which is currently being transferred since it's now on private property), small patches of weeds were beginning of grow thanks to the recent gusts of wind sending seeds from Neo Domino outwards. By gusts of wind, of course, I mean the side effects of Earthbound Immortal summoning. For the first time since the third world war, this soil supported life again.

Now that international satellites are a thing of the past, the only one to have witnessed this are the scouts sent out from the Satellite to explore their new land. Their report landed on Yuki's desk (in the form of an email) in record time, only to be deleted just as quickly.

So there's _weed_ , Yuki thought absentmindedly, annoyed to have been distracted from her Dark Signer plans, why are they telling me this?

* * *

 **A/N:** Thought I'd write something seasonally appropriate, barely managed to upload t within the holiday season. happy holidays!

Also, please review! I figure I don't ask for reviews enough.

 **A/N 2:** I shouldn't be writing this... I have time free during the holidays but I don't actually have free time, I have so much stuff that needs to be done _

 **A/N 3:** Have now deleted seasonally appropriate content, as they are no longer seasonally appropriate. XD


	52. Mark of the Whale

Disclaimer: I do not own YGO 5Ds

* * *

Now that the room had thinned considerably, I could taste the awkwardness in the air, most of which was originating from Jack. I don't blame him, how do you face your best friend whom you abandoned and tried to throw into jail a couple of times, succeeding once, after you tried to kill one of his friends? Okay, so I do blame Jack, he almost killed a kid when he was sixteen or did everybody just forget that?

Mina leaned back into her chair, Trudge stepped back until he was pressed against the wall, Carly gulped loudly. Chaos stretched his legs out under the table, content to wait for the show. The only one completely immune to this tension is Yusei.

"It's good to have you back," Yusei told Jack casually as though the blond just came back home after a semester abroad, "We're gonna need all the help we can get if we hope to defeat the Dark Signers."

I looked at Yusei, then at Jack, then at the rest of the audience- I was filled with relief when I realized I wasn't the only one who found this conversation utterly ridiculous. I can't understand how Yusei still talks like this after 2 years as though no time has passed. Maybe it's a main character thing?

"Goodwin filled me in," Jack rubbed the back of his neck, looking every bit as uncomfortable as the rest of us measly mortals.

Nope, guess it's just a Yusei thing.

Jack shifted in his seat again. Now that there was nobody between him and Yusei, he looked acutely aware of the scar on his (ex?) best friend's face and the harsh lines that comes from being stuck in the Satellite. Jack would have to be dumber than I think he is to not realize how utterly disconnected he had become to the Satellite after all this time. After all, he was the Champion of Neo Domino, back to visit his last residence escorted by agents from the city to which he now belongs. He may not completely fit in at Neo Domino yet, but he's certainly not a satellite.

Also, speaking for the Satellite (which I can do because I now own it) the Satellite doesn't want him! What with the whole attempted murder thing and all.

Sorry I still can't get over that. I'm a little sensitive about the whole topic of death right now. Plus, it's attempted murder for god's sake! At the age of 16, he tied Rally, an 8 year-old who trusted and looked up to him, to a boat floating freely at sea, in a bid to get Yusei to jump into said boat, just so he could steal some trading cards. Some trading cards! Can you imagine what he would do for something actually worthwhile?

I mean, Lazar just asked him to steal Yusei's Stardust, that whole setup was not part of his deal to get into Satellite. He could have just taken Stardust from Yusei and left in the middle of the night, it would have been exactly the same for him to not frivolously put two people's lives in danger. What if Yusei had a cramp that day? The entire world would have been doomed.

No wonder Yliaster had to look through so many realities to find one that had a chance.

Remembering what Jack had done, I stood up and dragged Chaos' chair until it was situated between me and Jack. Chaos gave me an uncomprehending look but slid over obligingly as his chair made a loud creak on the wooden floors.

"Alright, I'm gonna say what we're all thinking," I sat down, then pushed Chaos a bit further from the table so that I could look at Jack in the eyes, "You don't deserve to stand on Satellite soil, let along in this room."

"Yuki!" Yusei cut me off sharply, then quickly turn to Jack, "Jack, don't listen to her. That's not true! You're always welcome in the Satellite with me!"

"You don't count," I rolled my eyes, "Everybody _else_ , including Jack himself, is thinking the exact same thing."

"Yuki, I like you and I can see that you want to protect me." Yusei said seriously, "But Jack is my friend too and I know he's a good person. It's true that he's made mistakes in the past, but that's why he needs our help and support! Can you take Jack for the person he _is_ , not the person he used to be?"

He makes sound like Jack is on trial for public urination after a New Year's party.

"I really don't understand how you can defend him," I asked, truly incredulous. "When he threw you into the Facilities, he had no idea Akiza would get you out!" Just like in the show, Jack had no idea Goodwin would let Yusei out. Chilling thought, isn't it?

"He was battling with the Darkness inside himself. Now that he's finally won, this isn't the time to turn him away!" Yusei insisted. "You don't give up on your friends after they've made mistakes, you help them improve and get better. That's what friends do for each other!"

"You mean not throw each other into jail?" I sneered sarcastically.

"Yusei." Jack said suddenly before Yusei had a chance to protest again. "You're right, Yuki. I've done a lot of things I'm not proud of, but that's why I'm here, to make things right again! I want to do everything I can for the Satellite, so they can have the opportunities I had."

I bit back a 'by throwing kids into the ocean?'

"Whether you like it or not, Jack Atlas is back and he's here to stay!" Jack proclaimed, smacking his hand against the table as he stood up. "I'm a Signer too and I will duel the Dark Signers until they're all defeated. Then I'll fix up the rest of the Satellite like we've always wanted and there's nothing you can do about it!"

If an attempted murderer spends the rest of his life doing good (which Jack probably won't do), is he then absolved of his crime? What if the murder had failed purely by chance? What if the murder had succeeded purely by chance?

I was busy grappling with these philosophical question instead of pointing out that I have every right to kick him off my property when Kalin burst in.

"Good and bad news," Kalin said with a grimace. He nodded to Yusei, then acknowledge Jack's existence with a nonchalant glance, "The souls Misty's Immortal captured is now back in the Satellite."

"We knew that would happen." I answered, "So what's the bad news?"

"That _is_ the bad news, and the good news." Kalin said like that wasn't confusing at all. "Misty had been a Dark Signer for much longer than me, so a lot more people have been freed in the Satellite."

"So what?" Trudge interrupted, "So there's a few more satellites hanging around, what is it to the rest of you?"

Kalin gave Trudge a cold look, probably because of his uniform, and continued as though uninterrupted. "These people had disappeared years ago, we all thought they were dead. Now thousands of people are showing up out of nowhere, most of their support system is gone. They still need food, clothing, shelter, not to mention a long-term plan."

"So just handle it yourself," Chaos said skeptically, "The Dark Signer battles are imminent, we really don't have anyone free at the moment."

"I would, but we don't have enough money." Kalin replied with a roll of his eyes, resisting the growing urge to bang his head against his desk. All these people running around playing their card games saving the world, feeling self-important. Nobody seems to remember how expensive it can be. "Forget the collateral damage for now, where do they live? What do they eat? We don't even have enough people to locate everyone who just appeared. If they starved to death in the sewers, we wouldn't find out until they smell."

"What? We don't- But," I sputtered a little, remembering I had spent most of our money on land purchases. It doesn't help that Goodwin just publicly announced his recent shipping restrictions in the Satellite, food prices doubled in a mater of hours. Our town currency tanked as a (completely foreseeable) result.

"Maybe that's something Atlas-sama can help with," Mina suggested, still fidgeting with her Red Dragon Archfiend necklace, "He made a lot of friends in Neo Domino."

"Good idea, Mina," Jack nodded, "Then my journey in the Satellite shall start here. It's time to remind the Satellite what Jack Atlas can do!"

"Come with me then," Kalin acted like he only met the blond, "Let's get to work."

"Hey, I'm coming too!" Carly jumped up, "This will be a great start for your comeback story, your fans would just eat it up!"

Mina followed Carly's example and left the room.

I stared after them, perplexed. Now I look like the one obsessed with the past. But Jack threw Yusei in jail like a month ago, this really isn't ancient history we're talking about. Frankly, I don't believe people changed this quickly.

"Get over yourself, they don't need your help." Trudge jeered, "You don't think like these people, you never will- you're not a satellite. These punks, they know their lives aren't worth much, so they're living out every pathetic second they have left. They don't hold a grudge for the past because all they can think about is the next second of instant gratification!"

I put a hand on Chaos' arm, guiding him to sit down before he punched Trudge. Trudge held his head up victoriously as he followed Mina out.

"Yusei, would you let, um," I racked my head for who's still left. Galen had asked for the Magicians to be present while he dueled Vincent, so my choices were becoming quite limited, "Let Blizzard know. He can work with the gang leaders of the Satellite to inform with public and set up a system to send these people to us if they needed help?"

"Of course." Yusei replied, "I'm happy to help out anyway I can."

Neither he nor Crow would be great for Satellite outreach, being ex-Enforcers and all.

"What do you need?" Chaos asked after Yusei left, "That's something I'd obviously take care of, so why did you send Fudo away?"

"Can you keep an eye on Trudge for me?" I asked Chaos seriously.

"Sure!" Chaos replied immediately. "You think there's something wrong with him?"

"He's talking funny," I explained, "He's being intentionally provocative, and I don't know why. Galen's not here, so either you or Crow would need to put a tail on him or something." Maybe I'm just thinking too much, but I do plan on being more cautious around people with guns and motives to use said guns against me. Call it a resolution.

"Consider it done." Chaos nodded.

"Thanks," I set my head back down on the table, wondering how long I can afford to stay in here before I had to face the real world again. It's exactly like when I used try and (often fail to) get away with taking another nap after my morning, except with the much more at stake... That's really adulthood in a nutshell, I mused while trying not to sleep.

"Hey," He paused at the doorway without turning around, "You're right you know."

"'Bout what?" I muttered disinterested.

"About everything," Chaos replied lightly, "About Atlas, and murder and responsibility; everything. It's this place that's wrong, don't ever forget that. Don't let this is place change you like it changed us, you deserve better than that."

"'Cause the Satellite needs to be led by someone untainted by its twisted ideals, right?" I replied wryly, glancing up at him as he was turning around to leave.

Chaos chuckled, then said with some emphasis, "Because you deserve better than that."

* * *

"That's clearly ridiculous! Brute force will never match up against the eloquence of _true_ power. Its very existence is an attestation to the futility of uncontrolled strength." Vincent insisted vehemently.

"Don't give me that BS." Galen rolled his eyes, "Power is power, no matter what label you put on it. It's still better than being completely reliant on the human race for survival. Your so-called 'knowledge' doesn't have a leg to stand on without strength to back it up!"

"What are they talking about?" Just having got the message while he was at school (teaching), Teddy was the last to arrive at the tarmac. He looked at Vincent and Galen in turn, both deeply engrossed in their argument, then at Felice at Cyril on the sidelines obviously enjoying the show.

"They're fighting over whether vampires or werewolves would win in a fight," Cyril explained.

"I'm rooting for werewolves, Cyril's rooting for vampires," Felice added, "Wanna break the tie?"

It was a pattern between Vincent and Galen to fight over _something, anything_ every time they meet. In the Satellite, before Yuki and her personal electronics came along, that was as much entertainment as the rest of them got.

"Why?" Teddy asked darkly, "So they can finish one last argument for old times' sake?" He brushed past the group to board the plane.

"Poor kid," Cyril muttered. Being too busy with the kids Crow was supposed to have been teaching, Teddy had been kept out of the loop for a while now.

Felice shrugged and boarded the plane herself. She made a beeline for the cupboard to pick out a bottle of champagne and a glass, adding a few ice cubes from the fridge. She needed and deserved a break. Cyril followed her but refused the drink she offered. Instead, he situated himself comfortably on the white leather sofa and rested his feet on the coffee table, ready for the show.

Vincent looked suspiciously at Galen, then at Felice and Cyril. They obviously have something up their sleeves, he just had to figure out what. Teddy sat stiffly on the sofa, he was the only one as oblivious as Vincent, which wasn't a comforting thought given the kid was only 14.

"Well? What are you waiting for? Let's duel." Galen urged, motioning for him to go first.

"Fine." Vincent set his suspicions aside, "As we agreed, when I win, the plane will land in Neo Domino and the Magicians will leave with me. No questions asked."

Teddy nodded seriously, Felice hmphed, already on her second mimosa, Cyril made some noise from under his blanket.

"That's as much as you're gonna get," Galen laughed, "They've been working hard, give them a break."

"Are you sure you guys won't just come with me?" Vincent waited till the plane took off to ask, "We can knock Galen out and just leave, nobody will be able to stop us. There's no reason for any of us to defend the Crimson Dragon and every reason for all of us to want to destroy it. Think of every morning you were woken up by hunger, every night you went to sleep not knowing if you would get up again. Now multiply that by whatever you want to cover all the sufferings humanity had endured for the past millennia, how can you still defend this monster?

"You know, we weren't going too bad ourselves, by Satellite standards." Felice replied evenly, "We could have helped a lot of people if we tried harder. But we didn't, and that's still okay."

"We were barely staying alive," Vincent defended, "We _could_ have helped more people, but nobody in their right mind would blame us if we didn't."

"For god's sake Vincent," Cyril snapped, "Look around, we're in a plane fitted with a dueling arena! We certainly didn't need one, but we wanted one, so we got it. If we had asked Industrial Illusions to save starving orphans instead of this plane, they probably would have. But we didn't, because we want a plane."

Galen and Felice laughed, Vincent only got irritated. Teddy looked a mixture between horrified and perplexed.

"Remember how we used to laugh at Akiza for demanding everybody go out of their way to help her?" Felice teased, "When did you become the same?"

"This is different!" Vincent insisted, "The Crimson Dragon has powers beyond our imagination!"

"That's not an excuse to demand for it to exert those powers for our good. We don't hold other individuals responsible for our own well-being. We never resented the residents of Neo Domino for not donating enough to the Satellite, we certainly won't hold some sort of monster responsible."

"Come on," Galen urged before Vincent actually blew up, "You owe me a _real_ duel, not the mind games and strategic losses you were playing at. Let's do this!"

* * *

Akiza arrived in Neo Domino in the middle of the night, Neo Domino remains brightly lit, denying her the cover of darkness. Though that hardly matters, she came looking for a fight. She ran her slender fingers through the feathers of her Black Rose Dragon, relying on his fluffy coat to calm her growing irritation. As they say, she's about to meet her maker.

Sayer is never hard to find. He has an obsession with the extravagant and ostentatious. The Arcadia Tower is the second highest building in Neo Domino, second only to the Neo Domino government (/duel arena) itself, a gesture Sayer made while still pretending to be loyal to Rex Goodwin. Sayer is almost invariably on the top floor, he has no reason to run, he's one of the most powerful mortals on the planet, it would take a fleet of fighter jets to take him down. Well, Akiza nuzzled into her dragon, a fleet of fighter jets or a single Black Rose Dragon.

"Welcome, Akiza, My Rose." Sayer was waiting for her at the top of the building, impeccably dressed in a suit and tie as always, his arms extended as though expecting her to jump into his embrace. "Welcome home."

"Home?" Akiza mocked then promptly stopped herself, she didn't come all this way to bicker. "I'm looking for two kids you kidnapped, Luna and Leo. Give them to me now Sayer, and I will leave."

"Akiza, Akiza, Akiza," Sayer tutted, "Now even an 'how are you' for your oldest friend? I was worried about you, and what would become of you after your sentimentalities weakened your powers. Yet here you are, attacking me when I have done nothing but help you ever since we met!"

Akiza hesitated. She knew Sayer was lying, he wasn't worried about her at all except how her actions would affect him. On the other hand, he had helped her more than anybody else, maybe even more than Yusei. He was there when she was desperate, hopelessly alone, and just hopeless. He had given her a reason to live when she had none, even if his motives were entirely selfish.

"How are you Sayer?" She asked slowly, "Are you ready to give me the kids you took and leave Domino?" She paused, her voice growing louder, "It'll be much easier if you cooperate. Give me the kids and leave, never show up again. I can promise that if you leave Domino, I won't go looking for you. That's the most I can do."

"Trying to force my hand, My Rose?" Sayer asked, "How do you plan on defeating me, when I taught you everything you know?"

"Sector Security are on their way," Akiza said solemnly. She looked a little wistful, Sayer's voice used to give her chills, now it just gives her goosebumps. Everything's changed, and Sayer doesn't seem to realize that yet. "They'll try you in the Domino City system." Given what Sayer did to Vincent and Ara, Akiza insisted on delivering him personally to Sector Security. It's the last thing she'll do for Sayer, she told herself again.

"You're getting cocky, Akiza," Sayer sneered. He had used a number of tricks to keep Akiza insecure so she thinks she needed him, this new Satellite attitude has to go. "I know every card in your deck, you've never won a single game against me. If you want a duel, you got one. Let's see if you learned any new tricks while you're away from me!" He lifted his duel disk, locking Akiza into a duel.

"It's true that I've never beat you in a duel, but I have learned a few things in the Satellite. For example, this isn't a game." Akiza tilted her head with a playful smirk, stroking her Black Rose Dragon and completely ignoring the duel request. "There's a reason you needed me in the first place Sayer, your powers can't hold a candle next to mine. I have my dragon, where's yours?"

Akiza had to admit, despite all her anger towards her powers, she did enjoy having a personal dragon.

Sayer looked stunned as Black Rose Dragon swooped down to grab him in his teeth. Sayer was a powerful psychic duelist, but he knew he would lose miserably against Akiza in an actual fight. Instead, he let himself be lifted into the air as Black Rose Dragon took flight, descending towards where the Sector and paramedics were gathering.

* * *

 **A/N:** As you might have guessed, I've been wanting to rant about Jack for a while. It's actually chilling to think about a sixteen year-old putting an eight year-old's life at risk just to test what kind of person his best friend was. Even more chilling than throwing said best friend in jail to get branded as a criminal.

In one of the games, I think it was Tagforce 4 or 5, Jack tells Rally, "I don't deserve to stand in front of you,' and for once, I was in complete agreement with Jack Atlas.

 **A/N 2:** I wonder how they explained away the Dark Signer thing to the public in the anime. By the looks of things, at least thousands of people disappeared and showed up again, they had a montage of it in the show too, like Greiger's village. Do these people not wonder what happened?

 **A/N 3:** This is the second half of Rex & Roman's Crimson Dragon discussion. I had originally wanted to post it in the same chapter, but the plot just didn't fit. I don't have a side, that's why I presented both. XD It's really for you to decide.


	53. Dark Magician vs Red Eyes

**Disclaimer:** I do not own YGO 5Ds

 **A/N:** This chapter really should have been with the last chapter, but then it got too long. Also I didn't finish the duel then, so here you are.

* * *

A silver plane, looking completely out of place in the Satellite, took off from the courtyard in front of the Development. Most satellites dismissed it as more Sector Security business to which they were not privy, the few in the know recognized it as Zephyr property. The giant whale-shaped light that spread across Domino and Neo Domino was harder to miss. Then again, their knowledge doesn't affect anything at all; satellite lives carry on, utterly reliant on yet completely ignorant of the duels overhead.

Felice, Cyril and Teddy had all taken their positions on the couch, with Teddy sitting at attention, Cyril sprawled out over a pile of cushions with his laptop, while Felice had settled down with her champagne.

Vincent stood at one end of the duel arena, still wrapped in his Dark Signer cloak. His outfit was decorated in the purple insignia of the whale, which went fairly well with his red eyes and long red hair. Instead of tying it in a ponytail like he usually does, Vincent let his hair hang loosely down his shoulders. With the powers seeping out of him, tendrils of hair floated in the air like snaking seeking their next prey.

Galen tried a little harder to look intimidating. Or at least a little scary. He even wore his most imposing white trench coat for this! Though try as he might, at 5'6 and 16 years old, he was a kid playing grown-up, and looked the part. His soft pink hair and baby-doe eyes didn't do him any favors either. Recognizing the stark contrast, Galen pouted, then immediately stopped himself. He is fierce, and powerful, and ... stuff. He is _not_ adorable!

"Let me start the duel then," Vincent's red eyes looked like they were on fire. He pulled out his real deck, with a couple of new upgrades from his time with the Dark Signers. "If I have to defeat you to get the rest of the Magicians of the that hellhole, that just sweetens the deal for me."

X

Turn 1: Vincent 4000, Galen 4000

"I start with Dark Magic Circle. This is a new card Roman had, you'll find out its powers soon enough. First, when I activate it, i can look at the first three cards in my deck and add one to my hand. Next, I'll place two cards face down and end my turn.

Turn 2: Vincent 4000, Galen 4000

"Alright, my turn then," Galen drew. "Why don't I start with a field spell, Dragon Shrine. The stage is ready for your Earthbound Immortal, whenever you want to bring it out, I'm ready!

I use the effect of Dragon Shrine to send Red-Eyes Archfiend of Lightning and Red Eyes Black Flare Dragon from my deck to the graveyard. Next, I summ **on Gearfried the Red Eyes Iron Knight (lv4, 1800/1600)** and equip Black Metal Dragon (lv1 600/600) to him. Gearfried's ability lets me send Black Metal Dragon to the graveyard to revive another monster, so come on back **Red Eyes Black Flare Dragon (lv7 2400/2000)**. When Black Metal Dragon is sent to the graveyard, I get to add one Red Eyes monster from my deck to my hand. I'm sure you know him well, you've met him plenty of times before. I banish Red Eyes Black Flare Dragon to special summon, **Red Eyes Darkness Metal Dragon (lv10, 2800/2400)**."

"You really prepared for this duel, huh?" Vincent asked, amused, "Doesn't matter, this isn't a duel that you can win, the _stars_ are stacked against you, so to speak."

"We'll find out." Galen had a twinkle is his brown eyes, as though getting an inside joke that went over the head of all their audience. "I activate Red Eyes Darkness Metal Dragon's effect to bring **Black Metal Dragon (lv1, 600/600)** back onto the field, and equip him to Gearfried the Red Eyes Iron Knight, increasing my knight's attack by another 600 to 2400!"

Vincent flipped his ponytail, looking utterly unimpressed.

"Red Eyes Darkness Metal Dragon attacks Vincent directly, Darkness Metal Flare!" Galen commanded.

"I activate my face down card, Magician Navigation, this spell guides my mages from my deck and my hand to the field where they belong! I special summon **Dark Magician (lv7, 2500/2100)** from my hand and **Dark Magician Girl (lv6, 2000/1600)** from the field. Since I activated a trap card in your turn, its magic shows the way for **Magician of Dark Illusions (lv7, 2100/2500)** , so I special summon him in defense mode from my hand."

Galen's warrior stopped dead in his tracks.

"Since Magician of Dark Illusions is treated like Dark Magician when he's on the field, my Dark Magician Girl gains 600 attack to 2600, making her the most powerful monster on the field!" Vincent continued.

"What? The most powerful monster? Have you forgotten about my Red Eyes Darkness Metal Dragon?" Galen asked.

"Oh, I forgot," Vincent beamed, "Whenever a spell or trap activates, it triggers my Dark Magic Circle as well, which allows me to banish one monster from the field, say goodbye to your Darkness Metal Dragon."

"I place two cards facedown and end my turn," Galen responded tensely.

Turn 3: Vincent's Turn, Vincent 4000, Galen 4000

Vincent Hand 4, field Dark Magician, Magician of Dark Illusions, Dark Magician Girl, Dark Magic Circle

Galen Hand 1 field 4 (Dragon Shrine, Gearfried the Red Eyes Iron Knight, face down Red Eyes Spirit & Balance of Power)

"This duel might last even less time than I thought. I activate my spell card, Illusion Magic, tributing my Dark Magician to bring two Dark Magicians to my hand. Thought my mage has left the field, my Magician of Dark Illusions brings **Dark Magician** back from the dead and onto my stage once more! Not only that, The activation of my Illusion Magic triggers Dark Magic Circle, which lets me banish another card on your field. Since you have so few, I think I'll just get rid of a facedown."

"I activate Red Eyes Returns," Galen flipped over the face down card Vincent pointed at, "To bring back **Red Eyes Archfiend of Lightning (lv6, 2500/1200** ) to the field. Even though my trap is destroyed, my monster remains!"

"That won't save you," Vincent replied, "Dark Magician, destroy Gearfried the Red Eyes Iron Knight!" Dark Magician's attack dealt **700 damage** , sending Galen reeling in pain.

"Now Dark Magician girl, destroy Red Eyes Archfiend of Lightning!"

With Dark Magician and the Magician of Dark Illusions on the field, Dark Magician Girl's 2600 attack obliterated the much larger dragon into pieces, dealing Galen another **100 damage** and leaving his field wide open.

"When a Red Eyes monsters is destroyed, I can special summon **Red Eyes Retro Dragon (lv4, 1700/1600)** from my hand to my field in defense mode. When I do, the monster that was destroyed is brought back onto the field as well, my **Red Eyes Archfiend** isn't going anywhere!" Galen explained as two more dragons rose onto his field.

"Magician of Dark Illusions, destroy Red Eyes Retro Dragon," Vincent ordered, leaving Galen only two cards on the field. "Now I place one card face down and end my turn."

"Before you do," Galen countered, "I activate my trap, Balance of Power. Since you have 3 monsters and 3 spell cards on your field and I only have 3 cards total in my hand and field, I get to draw three brand new cards!"

"You're gonna need them," Vincent sneered.

Turn 4: Galen's Turn, Vincent 4000, Galen 3200

"I will, and I'll put them to good use." Galen replied, "But for now, I'll activate my Dragon Shrine field card again."

"Not so fast, I banish Magician Navigation from my graveyard to negate the effects of Dragon Shrine for this turn." Vincent tapped at his graveyard.

"I special summon **Red Eyes Archfiend of Lightning** again to activate his effects," Galen looked unaffected by the setback, "this lets me destroy every monster on your field that has less defense than his attack. I think that's... Every monster on your field!"

"I activate my facedown, Magical Dimension. Since I have a spellcaster on the field, this spell card gives my monster the power to destroy your dragon, and special summon another spellcaster from my hand to my field."

Galen's dragon's special ability resolved first, all three of Vincent's spellcasters were destroyed in a flurry of dragon fire. Next, Magical Dimension took effect, slicing Galen's Red Eyes in half while **Dark Magician** emerged onto Vincent's side of the field. Dark Magic Circle activated again, the magic retreated reluctantly after finding no more cards on Galen's field.

"Face it, Dark Magician is a better deck." Vincent commented.

"Maybe," Galen smirked, "But Red-Eyes has a better player. I activate another field spell, Catalyst Field, and I activate its effect to special summon **Red Eyes Baby Dragon** (lv3, 1200/7000) in defense mode. I'll place one more card face-down and end my turn."

Turn 5: Vincent's Turn Vincent 4000, Galen 3200

"I activate the spell, Bond Between Teacher and Student to special summon **Dark Magician Girl** onto the field in attack mode! Since I have one Dark Magician on the field and one in the graveyard, she gains 600 attack, increasing her attack to 2600. Dark Magician, destroy Red Eyes Baby Dragon," Vincent proceeded cautiously.

"When Baby Dragon is destroyed, I can special summon Red Eyes Archfiend of Lightning (lv6, 2500/1200) from my deck and equip Baby Dragon to him, increasing his attack by another 300 to 2800."Galen announced victoriously as his dragon rose onto the field again.

"I'll put another card face down and end my turn." Vincent replied.

"I bet Vincent has some really good card face down!" Teddy chimed in enthusiastically.

Turn 6 Galen's Turn; Vincent 4000, Galen 3200

"To start my turn,"Galen looked suspiciously at Vincent's face down card, "I activate the effects of my Catalyst field to banish Red Eyes Archfiend of Lightning. It's a high price to pay but it allows me to destroy your Dark Magic Circle as well. This would also sent my Red Eyes Baby Dragon sent to graveyard, and his effect adds Buster Whelp of the Destruction Swordsman (lv1,dragon, tuner, 400/300) to my hand."

"What's up your sleeve?" Vincent asked nonchalantly, as though certain he couldn't lose.

"Dragon's Mirror" Galen admitted with a coy smile, "I banish Red Eyes Black Dragon and Red Eyes Archfiend of Lightning from my graveyard to special summon, **Meteor Black Comet Dragon (lv8, 3500/2000)** , You'll haven't gotten acquainted yet, but I doubt you'll forget him anytime soon."

"Now that he's on the field, I can send Red Eyes Black Dragon (lv7, 2400/2000) from my deck to the graveyard, and in the process deal damage to your attack points equal to half of his attack."

Vincent grunted at the loss of **1200 LP.**

"Now Meteor Black Comet Dragon, destroy Dark Magician Girl!"

The attack dealt Vincent another **900 damage.** Dark Magician Girl was incinerated in the incoming attack, leaving Vincent's field wide open.

"I place 1 card face down and end my turn, now my Red Eyes Archfiend of Lightning returns to my field."

"Why didn't Galen attack instead of banishing Vincent's spell?" Teddy asked curiously, "He might have won the game."

"I couldn't," Galen replied without offering any more context, though all the adults in the room seemed to have understood.

'You keep saying that," Teddy interrupted, annoyed at not understanding the subtext, "What do you mean you can't win? Dark Signers can be defeated, we know that! We'd beaten Dark Signers before!"

Vincent chuckled. Cyril groaned, not even bothering to look up from his laptop. Felice tapped Teddy on the head, motioning for him to look at the guns strapped to her belt.

"We don't know what happens to Dark Signers who are defeated," Galen explained, sounding resigned, "So Felice and Cyril wasn't going to let me defeat Vincent and possibly kill him. We all knew that going in."

"I was going to shoot you with a tranquilizer," Felice defended herself with a grin.

"I appreciate that, and that's why I agreed to the duel," Galen replied in kind.

"No matter how optimistic you try to be, the game is rigged from the very start. You couldn't win." Vincent interjected, "Just like the games we had to play in the Satellite. We could never win, the only way to beat this system is to not play, get out while we still can."

"But what about everything you're giving up by not playing?" Galen asked.

"You're only giving up on your own life when you get in over your head," Vincent replied, frustrated at not winning the argument, "I activate my spell card, Fires of Doomsday, to special summon **two Doomsday Tokens (lv1, 0/0)** to the field."

Turn 7 Vincent's Turn, Vincent 1900, Galen 3200

"I tribute both of my Doomsday Tokens to summon, **Earthbound Immortal Chacu Challhua (lv10, 2900/2400)**!"

"What, no special chants this time?" Galen teased, "Did they not teach you their secret handshake either?"

"Very funny," Vincent said drily, "Why waste time on semantics when I possess one of the most powerful monsters in the world?"

Despite Vincent not uttering the ancient chants, souls rose up from the Satellite into his duel monster, allowing it to slowly take form.

"Great." Cyril glanced down at the town below them, "That's more of a mess to clean up when their souls are returned."

"We can always go back later so Galen will have to take care of it," Felice comforted him.

"Don't celebrate too soon. As I'm sure you're well aware, my immortal cannot be stopped by monsters on your field. Earthbound Immortal Chacu Challhua, attack Galen directly, Purgatory Retribution!"

The attack sent Galen flying back into a coffee table, which shattered on impact. Galen grimaced as he got up, gingerly picking out blood-stained glass shards from his pink hair.

"Next, I play the spell Thousand Knives to destroy your Meteor Black Comet Dragon. That'll be all for now," Vincent announced, "Your move."

Turn 8 Galen's Turn, Vincent 1100, Galen 300

"About time," Galen wiped the sweat off his brow, "I've been waiting for you to get your Immortal onto the field, so I could destroy it. I activate my trap, Red Eyes Spirit, to bring back **Red Eyes Black Dragon** to the field. Next, I summon **Buster Whelp of the Destruction Swordsman (lv1 tuner 300/400)** , to synchro summon **Scrap Dragon (lv8, 2800/2000).** Her effects let me tribute her to destroy any monster on the field, so I can destroy your Immortal once and for all!"

* * *

Galen looked on expectantly as Vincent's immortal fell.

"Come, you know better than this."' 'Vincent' laughed, His red eyes darkened until they looked black, "You're not getting him back this easily. He's mine as long as this duel continues, and when I win, he'll be mine forever!"

No sooner did he word fall than Felice's gun fired. A single tranquilizing bullet aimed straight at his heart, hit, and fell off of Vincent harmlessly.

"You're getting sloppy, Felice," 'Vincent' turned, sounding disappointed, "You should know the same trick wouldn't work twice, I taught you better than that. You already beat Misty with that move, and to use it on me. Honestly, I'm hurt."

"No harm in trying," Felice shrugged, unabashed. Neither her nor Galen looked defeated by the failed attempt.

"You probably shouldn't shoot at anything anyway," Galen reassured Felice, "I know it's only champagne but you're on your second bottle."

"Dregs of my second bottle." Felice corrected with a grin. "Well then, let's end this."

"You never listen, Felice," The monster interrupted, "The mortal weapons you possess can no longer harm me!" Dark Magician waved his staff menacingly, adding emphasis to his owner's words. The mage was exactly the same yet looked completely different, more... solid. The monster had never been translucent, but now his presence could be _felt_ , from the warmth of his body to the noise of his labored breath.

"Let's make sure nothing can enter or leave the dueling field until this game is over, shall we?" Vincent taunted.

His spellcaster waved his staff, soft purple light enveloped the entire dueling field, separating the duelists from their audience.

"Then it's time for me to make my move, Red Eyes Archfiend of Lightning, destroy Dark Magician!"

"Wait, attack with Red Eyes Archfiend?" Teddy questioned, "But he has the exact same attack as Dark Magician!"

"And both of them would be destroyed in battle," Galen replied, "So I can activate my trap, Red Eyes Burn! When a Red Eyes monster I control is destroyed, I can activate this card to deal its attack points as damage to both duelists, bringing this game to a draw!"

"I don't think so," Vincent flipped over his facedown card, "I activate my trap, Shining Silver Force. This trap negates the activation of any card that will deal effect damage to my life points, then it destroys all spells and trap cards on your field!"

Galen's single Catalyst Field was destroyed.

"Wait," Galen suddenly noticed, "That was the card you put down in the first turn."

"I knew you were going to play that trap to end this game in a draw, so I came prepared." Vincent replied firmly, "I told you, you're going to lose this game, and when you do, you'll lose your life with it! Now you have nothing in your hand or on your field!"

Indeed, both players were left with completely empty fields. Given the Dark Magician and Red Eyes archetypes, nothing in their respective graveyards will likely prove useful. Galen's hand was also empty.

"We have to do something!" Teddy jumped up from his seat, "Vincent's right, Galen's field and hand are both completely empty. I've been tracking his graveyard too, there's nothing he can use! How are you guys still sitting there?"

Felice responded by putting her champagne glass aside, Cyril leaned forward ever-so-slightly in his seat.

"Looks like our audience have finally understood the inevitability of your situation." Vincent cackled, looking positively gleeful. "Prepare for you doom, I draw!"

"Wait a second, it's still my turn, right?" Galen pointed out, twirling his pink hair with a tongue-in-cheek grin.

"There's nothing more you can do, just accept your Fate. The rest of the world will soon join you." Vincent roared. "I'm invincible!"

"Perhaps, but I'm not," Galen quipped with a smirk. He raised his duel disk and bashed himself over the head.

The light on his duel disk faltered reluctantly, finally fading into nothingness as the programs recognized an unconscious duelist and forced an ending to the game. As the spirit that inhabited him left, Vincent collapsed onto the ground.

* * *

"That, that was your plan?" Teddy looked up at Felice and Cyril, still in shock.

"I think it's pretty fool-proof," Cyril smirked. his blue eyes suddenly reminded Teddy of the light from the Immortals- _evil_ , he decided, _absolutely evil_. "But this evil is on your side," Cyril added, as though reading his mind.

Vincent was already waking up from the duel, Cyril rushed forward to help him get up.

"I'm fine too, thanks for asking," Galen was still laying on the ground, regaining consciousness after less than half a minute, his voice came out softer than he intended. Any bruising on his scalp was hidden by his piles of wavy pink hair, though a thin trickle of blood had seeped out. "I think I need to go to Neo Domino for a check-up later."

"Let's go now!" Teddy offered brightly.

"Yeah, we still have to finish this." Galen didn't even bother getting up, still lying on the ground, he managed to fish a pair of handcuffs from his back pocket and toss it in Vincent's direction. "Vincent, I'm afraid I have to do this one by the books. Vincent Ulrich, you're under arrest for -"

"No he's not." Felice scoffed, stopping the handcuff with her foot, "Don't be ridiculous, he's not under arrest for anything."

"I'm in charge of security now, I have to protect this city, which means everybody is equal under the law." Galen protested half-heartedly, still lying on the ground, obviously more interested in a nap than an arrest at this point.

"Sure..." Felice trailed off suspiciously, glancing in Cyril's direction.

"You have no proof Vincent did anything," Cyril smiled complacently.

"We have video footage," Galen replied automatically.

"No you don't." Cyril shook hiser head. "They never existed."

"What? I saw them with my own eyes!"

"Well, you can't prove that they ever existed anymore," Cyril amended, he smiled apologetically, waving vaguely in the direction of her laptop.

"What about the eye-witness accounts? Thousands of people saw him! This isn't something you can just smoother over!"

"And I can get thousands of people to say they saw nothing of the kind." Cyril dismissed, "I'm sure any accusations was... um..."

"Paid by Rex Goodwin to destabilize our group," Felice finished for him, blushing at the look everyone gave her, "What? I can be creative when necessary, I just don't like doing it."

"Look guys," Vincent interrupted, "I'm..."

"Innocent!" Teddy finished for him, "You're not going anywhere! I'm not growing up without you!"

"Ugh, this is giving me a headache," Galen groaned, "On top of the headache I gave myself. You know what, whatever. Just ask Yuki, if she's okay with it, I don't care."

"Thanks," Felice smiled gratefully. "I owe you one."

"That's okay," Galen replied, propping himself up onto his right elbow, "Felice, I have a question."

"Shoot," Felice said quickly, feeling a little uneasy.

"Do you think Zero Reverse is to blame for the Satellite?" Galen asked tentatively, somehow, Felice knew that wasn't the question he had in mind.

"Partly," Felice proceeded with caution, "Being cut off from the rest of the City doesn't help, but as far as I know, the Satellite had always been the slums of Domino City."

"Rex Goodwin then?" Galen tried again.

"I try," Felice laughed, "But Satellite didn't get worse when he took over, I think it even got a little better. It just didn't get better as much as Neo Domino did."

"If you don't blame Neo Domino, Rex Goodwin or even Zero Reverse, then who do you blame for the Satellite?" Galen finally blurted out the question he wanted to know.

Felice pulled on her hair, releasing them from the french braids she usually wore. With her hair down, Galen thought she suddenly looked much older.

"I don't know," She replied, "I mean, a lot of cities have desolate Satellite cities, those that don't have slums in different pockets of the city instead. They never had Zero Reverse, so what do they blame?"

What to blame for poverty and injustice, Vincent tried not to laugh, and a bunch of uneducated, barely-literate teenagers trying to answer that question.

But the answer is simple, humanity. Humanity is to blame for all the evils it had unleashed onto itself. Even as a mortal, he could really sympathize with the Dark Signer point of view, why not get a fresh start, when everything around you seems so hopeless already? Then again, as long as him and his Magicians were fine, what did he care about the rest of the world?

* * *

"Akiza!" Blizzard rushed out of the Arcadia in front of which Akiza had been waiting. He rushed up as Akiza dismounted, completely ignoring Sayer and the giant dragon. "Are you okay? Are you hurt at all?"

"I'm fine." Akiza took a few steps back, she still wasn't entirely comfortable with any type of intimacy, or indeed most types of friendly interactions. "I'm okay, thanks" She smiled, trying not too look too aloof to people she liked.

"Congratulations on your win," Blizzard didn't seem to mind, instead, he stood still, letting her decide the distance between them. "Why don't I take care of things from here so you can get some rest, you look exhausted. If you were hurt at all, we have two medical teams, one here and on in the Satellite."

"Uh, thanks. I think I'll be okay." Akiza turned him down, feeling a little self-conscious. She didn't like being examined, particularly not by a medical team. It always made her feel like a freak.

"Akiza!" Luna was carried out of the building on stretchers. Leo was rushed out from the building and directly into the ambulance.

"Hey! Wait for me!" Luna rolled off the stretcher, hobbling towards the ambulance.

"Luna," Blizzard placed a hand on Luna's shoulder gently. When the young Signer looked up at him, he bend down to pick her up into his arms, letting her rest against the crook of his neck, sobbing as children do when they realize there's finally an adult to take care of the situation.

"I know you want to be with your brother, Luna. I can see that you two are very close and I promise he will get the best care available in Neo Domino. But we need your help right now in the Satellite. Will you help us?"

Rex Goodwin wants Leo in Neo Domino as hostage, but this little girl doesn't need to know that.

"There is a Darkness gathering," Akiza supplemented, "We need all the Signers gathered in the Satellite in case we need to duel the Dark Signers. We have to go back now Luna."

"Uh-huh," Luna nodded, wiping her eyes against his tie, "I will! Sayer won't stop me from helping Yusei and everyone!"

Blizzard patted her back gently, taking out a handkerchief to clean the tears and dirt off her face, "You're very brave, Luna. Leo would be proud of you too."

"Hm..." Luna closed her eyes, enjoying the nurturing care she had always craved but has been almost non-existent in her upbringing. This is how she imagined a big brother should be, why can't Leo act like this? She snuck her hand out, trying to look casual as she slipped Blizzard's handkerchief into her own hands, "Thank you, Mr, um."

"Dyson," Blizzard replied, "But you can call me Blizzard."

"Thank you Mr Blizzard," Luna smiled broadly, "I'll clean this and give it back to you!"

"Sure, I'll look forward to it then, Ms Luna." Blizzard patted Luna on the hair, Luna blushed, burying her face deeper into his shirt.

"We have to get back." Akiza repeated, she felt a little uncomfortable looking at Blizzard treat Luna the way Sayer might have treated her if he had met her when she was younger. She felt a little guilty, and paranoid. She was clearly projecting her own fears onto a completely different situation.

Blizzard nodded with a gracious smile.

"Do you want to ride dragons?" He grinned, lifting Luna up into the air. Luna nodded energetically, her eyes shining with excitement.

Akiza received Luna with a smile, putting the younger Signer onto the back of her Black Rose Dragon.

"Yusei is by the pier," Blizzard offered, "He wanted to practice some new moves on Sector Security while he can."

"Thanks Blizzard, I'll see you in the Satellite." Akiza was clearly at her most friendly, even Black Rose Dragon nuzzled Blizzard before taking off. Akiza looked back at Blizzard. Standing in the middle of the Neo Domino pier, surrounded by people milling about him, Blizzard was the only thing that caught her eye. He looked weathered, and wise, like the adult every adolescent can't wait to grow up to become.

Blizzard turned away and allowed himself to make a gagging face, now to deal with Yuki and Lazar, that might be marginally less unpleasant than dealing with the two Signer girls. He took off his tie, now covered in... colorful mucous, and tossed it onto the ground. He buttoned the front of his shirt, trying to get the slime on top as far from himself as possible, he had no plans of going back to Domino shirtless.

At least there's something in it for himself too, else he wouldn't know how to get through the day. Blizzard grinned at Sayer, the man who had put a price on his head since he lost the pier in the Satellite, thereby forcing him to stay with the Zephyrs.

"Blizzard," Sayer had obviously woken up a while ago, "I have a proposition."

Blizzard didn't even blink, Sayer continued hastily.

"I have gathered a number of techniques in training psychic duelists. I'll hand it all to you, if you just let me go!" Sayer offered, clinging on to life. "Think of all the powers you would possess! Think of the potential, if you had the opportunities these psychic duelists had!"

"I, I can't betray Yuki like this," Blizzard said, just in case there were security cameras nearby.

"You wouldn't be, of course not! What would the Zephyrs want with me except the psychic duelists and ways to train them?" Sayer understood his hesitation, "Now you're just getting the same information out of me right away, and of course, they wouldn't deny you access when you're the one who obtained it in the first place. You can do so much more good with your new-found powers."

 _Good_ , both Blizzard and Sayer had to bite back a laugh at the word.

"Let me... Think about it." Blizzard replied.

* * *

Everything is different. It shouldn't have gone like this, these, these _mortals_ , they have made a mockery out of the Final Battle. For the past 17 years, he had poured his heart and soul into giving this planet another chance, and it's all ruined! Ruined!

Roman raged. A wave of his hand sent the stone table clashing against the wall, where it shattered into a thousand pieces. The candle holder that had been on the table fell onto the ground, it's light fluttered, but did not fail. Only four candles remain lit, one for each of the remaining Dark Signers- Greiger, Ara, Devack and himself. Only four left from many.

Yet the others still remain, in a mortal form no less. TRUE life, granted to them by another mortal, though it will end as soon as the Ruler of the Netherworld wins this battle.

Roman knelt down onto the rubble, letting the stones dig into his no-longer living flesh, wishing he still felt pain.

Every five thousand years, the Crimson Dragon and the Ruler of the Netherworld battles for reign over the mortal realm. Dark Signers and Signers alike only serve as an extension of their power. That's what he learned, and that's what he told himself time and time again, ever since he pushed that cursed button that led to Zero Reverse. Yet these mortals, these mortals who are no different than he, how could they defy Fate?

From the scarce, cryptic messages he received from his Master, the prior battles had never proceeded like this. This was supposed to be a fight between Servants of the Crimson Dragon and Servants of the Netherworld Ruler. Mortals were never more than instruments that fought at the command of their respective gods. This time though, the battle had turned into one between the servants of the gods and the mortals whom they had ruled.

These mortals are playing with fire. He had gone over the hundreds of possibilities thousands of times in his mind in the last 17 years, the plan he had was the only one capable of succeeding. The rest only pushes this planet closer to destruction!

* * *

 **A/N:** The 101 ways of defeating a Dark Signer XD

 **A/N 2:** I've noticed a habit where I make an argument and then does my best to undermine it, I guess that's what happens when you always try to get a complete perspective. Fun in fiction, fairly problematic in real life.


	54. The Power of One

**Disclaimer:** I do not own YGO 5Ds

A/N: Or therelackof

* * *

I found myself driving through pouring rain again. It was a chilly November afternoon, the kind that makes you wonder if it was rain or sleet rapping against the window of your car. Suddenly, or rather expectedly, I saw a flash of lightning, fairly rare for this time of year. Though I had come to expect it, I nevertheless lost control over my car, like I always did, and crashed it. Into the side of a building this time. I thought the building looked vaguely like the duel stadium in Neo Domino.

My chest made impact first, crashing against the steering wheel when the airbags didn't deploy, then my legs plowed into the dashboard also, making an odd, crunching noise. Opening the door with my left hand, surprisingly not broken this time, I struggled to get out the car. Greiger came out of the rain like he always does, first firing at the gas tank until the car lit on fire, then at me. I didn't have duel monsters to protect me this time.

I breathed heavily as I woke again, at the same point as I always do. The same nightmare, merging my recent two near-death experiences, have been hunting me non-stop since the Greiger thing happened. Still lying in bed, I tried to get my heart rate and breathing under control again in hopes of getting a couple more hours of sleep before sunrise. The smell of metal and gunpowder still lingered even as my brain tried to convince me it was only my imagination.

"Tono." Greiger nudged the sleeping woman with the nozzle of his gun, "Time to face your fate." Roman had ordered him to defeat Atlas, which he will. But first, he thought he would get a little something for himself.

"Greiger?" I opened my eyes, momentarily disoriented, trying to tell if this was dream or reality. He pressed the gun harder into my arm in response, I immediately broke out in cold sweat.

I knew I should have spent more money on personal security! Truth is, it hadn't been something that I had to consider before. I always considered myself very safety conscious, but as a regular person, that included things like locking my door, paying my alarm company and carrying Mace. Body guards just felt so excessive. So now this.

"What do you want?" For a second, I was confused why he didn't just shoot me in my sleep, but the satisfied glint in his eyes told me the answer. He hated me enough that he wanted to see my horror and despair.

"You've escaped from the clutches of fate long enough," Greiger hissed, "Using whatever means necessary to get ahead, no matter who you threw under the bus in the process."

My brain worked furiously despite my lungs barely being able to breath, debating whether I should scream for help. Overpowering Greiger is out of the question, but there's really nothing keeping him from shooting me if I tried anything. In fact, I'm not sure why he hadn't shot me already.

"You don't have that luxury anymore," Greiger continued, obviously pleased with the fear radiating from my pores, "When all of your advantages are peeled away, there's nothing left except this whimpering, shaking mess. That's what you really are."

I had installed a silent alarm in my room, but it's under my desk across the room. Maybe if I got up...

"Now you have no where to run and nobody to hide behind," Greiger stood up, motioning for me to follow him outside, "Let's see how you do in a duel when the game isn't stacked in your favor."

Despite myself, I burst out laughing.

Ironically, all my fears dissolved with that comment.

In my nightmares, Greiger had always been a ruthless killing machine. He always came out of nowhere, shot, killed and left. But that's only a figment of my imagination. This Greiger, even the Dark Signer version, only wants a children's card game. Reality has turned my nightmares into a joke.

"Quiet!" He warned, shoving the gun against my chest until I had my back against the wall, "Anybody who comes here because of the noise, I'll get rid of them first. Now, grab what's left of your deck, I can't _wait_ for our duel."

"Neither can I." I sneered, white rage burning inside me. Greiger really has no idea about the resources available to an efficient organization (or an inefficient one like ours). I already have a couple of decent decks. I hesitated and chose a burn deck. I intend to destroy Greiger, not his monsters, and not his Immortal.

"Good. Then we can finally make up for the duel in Domino City, get your duel runner!" Greiger ordered as I hastily grabbed a jacket to go outside.

Turbo duel? I thought annoyed. I can't really refuse at this point, the Dark Signers usually don't offer that option. Maybe I can ride a bike? But no, that wouldn't work, I can't hold the handle in one hand and draw with the other, what if I fall off?

"Sure." I conceded, "Let me get Nervin's keys."

* * *

"This?" Greiger snickered, " _This_ is your ride?"

Greiger and I had gotten out of the house and into our storage area undetected. (I _really_ need a new security system, and maybe a security team... If I can find/afford one.)

I chose for my duel runner Nervin's tricycle. It had been fitted with a new electric motor, so technically I can call it a duel runner. But next to Greiger's runner, also a tricycle by the way, it looked like... Well, it looked like me standing beside Greiger, which doesn't sound like an encouraging comparison. None of that matters though, I just need something with three wheels so it doesn't topple over.

"Well? I'm ready," I started my 'runner' with a cold smirk. "Do you want to play or not?"

Greiger took out his deck, locking me in a duel as the outlines of a giant rose around us, trapping us in opaque purple light.

The mark of Earthbound Immortal Ccapac Apu, I remembered. The Giant, because Roman had given the mark of the Whale to Vincent.

"Can't wait for your doom I see." Greiger commented.

"This is a joke," I replied, free to speak my mind now that the duel had begun, " _You_ are a joke, and I'll show you why."

Greiger didn't respond, only stepped on the gas to race to the first bend, in order to get the first turn, which he naturally did.

"I summon-" He began, then looked back, visibly confused. The boundaries around us form the mark of Ccapac Apu, and they aren't transparent, so after he makes the bend, we can't see each other anymore- hardly practical for the purposes of our children's card game.

"Over here!" I shouted, laughing at how seriously he took the situation. It took about 15 seconds for me to get to the first turn, which I didn't think was too much time, but the look on Greiger's face obviously screamed otherwise.

"If you think this is a farce-" Greiger threatened.

"I do." I laughed again mockingly, "because it is. Also my runner is programmed to go a maximum of 30 miles per hour, that's our speed limit you see."

I could hear Greiger's teeth grinding loudly, that can't be good for his oral health.

* * *

"I summon," Greiger continued, reluctantly slowing his duel runner to a crawl (i.e the legal speed limit) to continue the game, " **Spell Reactor-RE (lv3, 1200/800)** , in attack mode, and set two cards face down, that ends my turn."

Turn 2, Yuki's Turn

"In that case, I'll summon **Reflect Bounder (lv4,1700,1000)** , attack Spell Reactor." I ordered, waiting for Greiger's trap to activate. Greiger had a good deck in the anime (disastrous in real life) because he was always able to draw the cards he wanted. But I know his every strategy (so like, three strategies), and he's doomed.

"I activate, Fake Explosion!" Greiger exclaimed victoriously, "To bring **Summon Reactor - SK (lv5, 2000/1400)** to the field, in attack mode!"

"I'll place three cards facedown also and end my turn," I replied.

Turn 3, Greiger's Turn

"I summon **Trap Reactor- Y FI (lv4, 800/1800)** to my field in attack mode!" Greiger obviously thought victory was in the bag, "Then I activate the effect of Summon Reactor - SK, to send Spell Reactor, Trap Reactor and Summon Reactor to the graveyard to summon- **Flying Fortress SKY FIRE (lv8, 3000/2500)**!"

"Activate trap, Bottomless Trap Hole." I flipped over one of my facedowns.

"My Flying Fortress negates the activation of your trap card and deals you 800 damage." Greiger said skeptically, but having no real option except to activate his monster's ability.

A holographic ball of flames flew my way and somehow caused me pain... But my duel runner remained steady because it has three wheels- I have excellent foresight.

"With the second effect of my Flying Fortress, I discard Dark Tuner, Dark Submarine to the graveyard and destroy your Reflect Bounder." Greiger seems familiar with the effect of my monster, which deals my opponent damage equal to the attack of the monster that destroyed it."Flying Fortress SKY FIRE, attack directly!"

"Activate trap, Widespread Ruin, and I'll chain it to Magical Cylinder." I watched as Greiger's life points dropped by 3000 to 1000 and his impressive fortress crumbled to the ground. "No, I'm not playing around this time."

"I activate the effect of my Dark Tuner Doom Submarine (lv-9, 0/0), to special summon itself to the field when I have no monsters on the field."

Greiger had no card left in his hand and had to end his turn.

Turn 4, Yuki's Turn Yuki 3200, Greiger 1000

"I place one monster face down and two traps face down to end my tun." I said flatly.

Turn 5: Greiger's Turn

"I summon **Dark Sea Rescue (lv1 0/0)** in attack mode, and tune her with my Dark Tuner Doom Submarine to synchro summon, **Dark Flattop (lv -8, 0/3000)** in defense mode. The effects of my Dark Sea Rescue and my Dark Flattop together lets me draw two new cards! I'll place one card face down."

"Next, I activate the effect of my dark synchro monster Dark Flattop to special summon **Flying Fortress SKYFIRE** back onto my field. I activate his effect to discard Dark Sea Float to the graveyard and destroy your face down monster."

My facedown monster was Marshmallow, an effect monster that would have dealt Greiger 1000 points of damage if she had been attacked. Greiger looked grim, realizing that he has very little room for error now that he only has 1000 LP left.

"By Dark Sea Float's effect, I get to draw another card." Greiger smiled victoriously down at the card he drew, and I knew he had drawn his Immortal.

"Flying Fortress SKYFIRE, attack directly!" Greiger commanded.

"Activate trap, Sakuretsu Armor." My armor was duly negated and I received 800 damage. "Now that your Flying Fortress had used up his ability, I can summon my trap monster, **Zoma the Spirit (lv4, 1800/500)**. I should explain, but by the look on your face, I see you're familiar with her effect."

"When Zoma the Spirit is destroyed in battle, she deals damage to the opponent equal to the attack points of the monster that destroyed her." Greiger replied as he stopped the attack. But that wouldn't be enough, because I can attack his Flying Fortress next turn and end the duel.

"I tribute Flying Fortress SKYFIRE and Dark Flattop to summon, the being without peer. Come forth and destroy my opponent, **Earthbound Immortal Ccapac Apu (lv10, 3000/2500)**." Greiger did the only thing he could do. Since Earthbound Immortals can't be attacked, he would be safe. The alternative would require him to discard his Earthbound Immortal next turn, which he (or whatever forces controlling him) was obviously reluctant to do.

The Giant appeared in Satellite again, though it feels much less intimidating the second time.

* * *

"Hey, you guys doing okay?" Akiza's Black Rose Dragon hovered over us, it's about time. I've been playing Greiger for more than 10 minutes.

Greiger looked up at Akiza, and saw his Immortal, with images of the souls it consumed, among them his own family. He immediately skidded to a stop, I kept going, pleased that I overtook somebody in a turbo duel.

"We're okay." I assured her, "Greiger's immortal's out, so I'll be able to finish this soon."

"Sounds good," Akiza nodded, "Yusei and Luna left to find another Dark Signer in the pier, Jack and Crow followed them. But the rest of us are here to cheer you on."

Since Galen and Vincent stayed in Neo Domino for medical treatment, that leaves Chaos, Kalin, Cyril and Felice.

"What Dark Signer activity?" I asked.

"My family!" Greiger exclaimed, completely ignoring and interrupting our conversation. "Why are they contained within this monster?"

"Oh yeah," I shrugged, "Remember how Earthbound Immortals absorb human souls when they're summoned?"

Did I not mention to Greiger that his family was killed by Earthbound Immortals? Must have slipped my mind when he was trying to kill me.

"Destroying the Immortal will bring them back though," Akiza assured him.

"Yu-Yuki-sama," Greiger forced out, "I would like- I would like nothing more than to destroy you! I don't trust a word from you and your Signer friends!"

He snarled, presumably having been influenced by his Earthbound Immortal, though he had always talked like that to me, so I really can't tell. "Your move."

Turn 6, Yuki's Turn

"You're not going to-" Black Rose Dragon hovered lower so Akiza could see my hand. "You'll kill him!"

"That's the point." I replied, determined to proceed with my game.

"I activate my facedown card, Call of the Haunted, to special summon Flying Fortress SKYFIRE in defense mode," Greiger activated his trap before I make a move. That won't save him.

"Yuki, wait!" Akiza called out passionately. "He doesn't deserve this!"

"Yes he does." I replied flatly.

"You don't want to be a killer!" She tried again.

"Right now, I sort of do." I answered with a grin at the sky."

"...Fine." Akiza's flames of passion had smoldered to cinders, "Kill him and destroy your reputation in the Satellite."

"That's a good point," I relented. Plus, Greiger would be revived after we destroy the Ruler of the Netherworld (whenever that is), revived and cleansed of all his sins. And that just didn't seem _fair_. "I summon, **Lava Golem (lv10, 3000/2500)** , onto your field! By tributing your Earthbound Immortal and Flying Fortress SKYFIRE!"

Flying Fortress SKYFIRE can destroy summoned monsters, but not negate their summoning.

Clarity returned to his eyes for a second and Greiger didn't hesitate. He had seen how quickly the Earthbound Immortals took hold of Dark Signers after the destruction of their cards. Greiger jumped off of his duel runner, grabbing his deck as he did so, and watched his runner crashing into the wall of light. The walls forming the Mark of the Giant blurred, then faded altogether.

"Good duel," I grinned up at Greiger, "Are you glad it's all over?"

Greiger took a deep breath where he stood, looking down at the ground without a word as he realized what would come next.

"Well?" I prompted again, sarcasm dripping from every word,"Aren't you _glad_ your family is in the real world now? Why don't you go find them?" I saw my team gathering around us as the mark of the giant disappeared, but at the moment, I didn't mind showing them the worst side of me.

"Yuki-sama," Greiger mumbled, barely coherent.

"Wait, you _did_ free everybody in his village, right?" Akiza said, looking at Greiger and I in turn, not understanding the tension between us.

"I did. I did." I nodded repeatedly with a malicious grin, "I did see the puddy cat! I mean, I did free everybody in his village. They're all free and alive right now!"

"I thought..." Akiza started, then trailed off at the ugly look on Greiger's face.

"You thought he'd be more grateful, right?" I said, intentionally twisting her words as my grin grew wide still, "So did I!"

"Yuki-sama," Greiger began, speaking clearly and earnestly this time "You do have my gratitude-."

"Nope, too late, don't care!" I cut him off, enjoying the embarrassment and restraint on his face. I felt guilty for a brief second, but I got over it fairly quickly thanks to another sharp pang of pain from my fractured sternum.

"I don't understand," Akiza said slowly, "What's he still doing here, why doesn't he just go back?"

"That's an excellent question," I laughed gleefully, turning to Greiger "Why doesn't he just go back? I do feel like I'm being exceedingly generous in not keeping him for a couple of years after all the trouble he's caused."

"Yes." Greiger stared at the ground in front of me, his voice trembling in anger and fear, "I thank you for your generosity, Yuki-sama."

"I don't think he meant it," Akiza said, honestly confused. "Why not?"

"I agree," I feigned confusion mockingly, "I don't think he meant it either."

Chaos sighed before I could say anything else.

"His village is in South America," Chaos explained more for Greiger's benefit than Akiza's, "Yuki's duel brought the people in his village back into this world, but the village itself was blown up by Goodwin's experiment months ago."

"Uh-huh." Akiza nodded, still oblivious, "Yusei told me about what Director Goodwin did, the Momentum testing had left only a crater where their village used to be. But that's why he needs to go back and rebuild, it's not like he can help them if he stays here."

Greiger had turned downright pale at her comment, I burst out laughing at the look on his face.

I honestly don't blame her, it took me a while after watching the anime to notice. It's funny what we take for granted. Akiza can summon a monster to bring herself to safety no matter where she is.. As for me, at least subconsciously, I expect to be saved by some government forces or other when I'm trapped in the middle of nowhere. Certainly I would expect it if a hundred people are trapped in the middle of nowhere. I mean, that's what taxes are for, right? Heck, that's what governments are for.

"Greiger's village is basically in a desert in the middle of nowhere, as in a couple of hundred kilometers from civilization," I wiped the smile off my face at Chaos' disapproving look, "So now he's got like, two hundred people, either juvenile or senile, trapped in a crater that used to be a village in the middle of nowhere, without shelter, food or, I'm presuming, water."

Greiger had been genuinely excited over our water collection system, which can only mean he needs drinking water back home.

"I sort of always assumed people would get rescued in cases like that," I continued as comprehension dawned on Akiza's face, "But who's gonna rescue them? The local government certainly wouldn't. The entire village being blown up didn't even make it onto the news, they hushed the whole thing up. In any responsible dictatorship," I paused, wondering if whichever country in South America Greiger is from was a dictatorship, then gave up, "In any decent dictatorship, they'd kill anybody who came back to life just to keep them quiet about not having been saved by the government in the first place."

Twisted logic, but sadly not that far from the truth.

You know, the most I think about it, the more curious the issue becomes. I wonder what actually happened to the people in Greiger's village in the anime. Greiger had asked Crow to 'take care' of his village before his supposed death, but he was revived like 6 hours later, when the Signers defeated Rex Goodwin. Presumably, he went back to 'save' his village, but what could he have done? All he had was the clothes on his back. Did he just sell a bunch of duel monster cards to make ends meet, or was there a deeper reason to his entire village disappearing and 'moving away' in the next season.

Akiza turned to study Greiger, finally realizing the powerlessness of a regular mortal when compared to her own powers. "He doesn't even have a duel runner anymore, how will he go back?"

Given international tensions, flights are now expensive and far-in-between.

"Or get the people in his village out or get any resources to them, even if he does make it back in time. I mean, _if_ he even makes it back on time." I added unhelpfully, "Beats me. Not my problem, not gonna worry about it. Let's go back to bed, I'm sleepy."

"What?" Akiza looked horrified. She's a good person, unlike me. Also, she didn't get shot.

"Yuki-sama," Greiger look a step forward, "I beg of you, for these kids if not for me-"

"No, definitely not for you. You're not doing the equation any favors." I barked a quick laugh, then stopped at the looks everybody gave me. "What? We're not gonna save everybody, you know we can't. There're plenty of people who needs our help, these kids aren't special just because somebody they know, I mean knew (?) tried to kill me."

"Please, they'll die without you, you're our only hope," Greiger quickly glanced up at my face before looking down again, "Anything you want to do to me, anything you want me to do, please!"

"Nope. Again, they're not my fault, not my problem. A lot of people would be alive with my help, but given limited resources, I'm afraid we can only do so much," I offered him a facetious smile, "Why don't you try your luck with somebody who you didn't try to kill a couple of days ago."

"Yuki," Kalin mumbled. The thing is, he grew up in the Satellite, so he understands that effective distribution of resources doesn't always agree with what you wanted to do.

"They'll die without our help?" Akiza searched my face, I returned a large smile.

"See, the thing is," I easily found the justification for my behavior, "We have limited resources, and there're just so many people who need help. South America is an ocean away, it's so much more expensive to save people there. With the same resources, we could help so many more people at home."

"But that's not really why you won't do anything, is it?" Chaos asked indulgently, "You were ready to break into Neo Domino for me."

"I would go to the end of time for you," I replied matter-of-factly, "But he's not you."

"So you're really not going to do anything for his village?" Cyril spoke up.

"Nope!" I replied cheerfully. "Look, if it makes you feel any better, we'll spend twice as much money to help ten times as many people back home."

"And you won't let us go either?" Cyril asked again.

"Why do you care?" I asked, perplexed, "It's not like you know any of them."

"Why do you?" Cyril asked. "What do you care whether it's a couple of hundred people in the Satellite who gets help or a hundred somewhere further away?"

"He shot me! I make a point to not reward that kind of behavior." I replied indignantly.

"You're okay now," Kalin said carefully.

"That's not the point!"

"You were wearing a vest," Felice actually sounded exasperated.

"But he didn't know that," I pointed out the obvious, "Why are you guys on his side?"

"I guess it's because we've all been where he is." Kalin said slowly, "Begging for help that would never come, clinging to hope when we knew there would be none. It's what kept us alive in this hellhole, and worse."

"Well, did you shoot the person you were trying to get help from?" I asked sarcastically.

"I shot _at_ a couple," Kalin admitted candidly, "I shot at a lot of people during my Enforcer days, I never hit any of them if you want to get technical."

 _Technical?_

"I'm not the one being petty here, am I?" I looked around searchingly, "I mean, he shot me! Doesn't that mean anything anymore?"

"You're not being petty," Kalin reassured me, but if you're trying to rule the Satellite, not being petty is not enough.

"In that case, let me just be petty!" I snapped, honestly getting a little peeved. "He shot me therefore I won't help him, and that's that. Now let's go to bed and save the world in the morning."

Kalin shrugged, looking like he gave up. My team might sympathize with Greiger, but nobody knew him well enough to _really_ fight for him.

"I can understand if Yuki-sama has reservations," Greiger said slowly, looking at me with a fire in his eyes that made me take a step back. He stepped up and continued, "I had done whatever Goodwin wanted in order to protect my village, and later to avenge them. It's only fair that I should do the same now. If my actions can mitigate even a fractions of my crimes-"

"I don't need-" I cut him off.

He started talking again before I could finish my sentence.

"I understand dueling is not as high a priority in the Zephyrs, nor are you short on excellent duelists."

I nodded. Honestly, Yusei is like a duelist magnet. We need literally every other type of people, other than duelists.

"Then perhaps I could be of use some other way." Greiger said as he reached for my hand. When I didn't move away, he took my hand and guided it to his flat stomach, sliding it up and across his own body.

I understood immediately.

My fingers lingered on his eight-pack for the fraction of a second, appreciating its shape and texture. He encouraged me by pressing even closer, standing straighter for my perusal. He was close enough that I could examine every inch of his abs with my tongue, as I was beginning to be increasingly tempted to do. As though of their own accord, I felt my fingers sneak up his shirt (armor? bra?), tracing the outlines of-

"No!" Chaos grabbed me by the back of my shirt, leaving me flailing helplessly in midair.

"Let me go!" I struggled jokingly in Chaos' hands, "I want to rip off that thing pretending to be a shirt and bounce quarters off of his pecs!"

"What?" Chaos burst out laughing.

"Yuki!" Akiza yelped.

"It would be my honor to oblige you, Yuki-sama." Greiger bowed slightly, keeping his eyes on a ground, as though what I just said was perfectly reasonable.

"See!" I pointed to Greiger.

Instead of letting me down, Chaos set me onto his shoulders before turning towards Greiger.

"We're not that kind of group," Felice said quickly.

"You're not?" Greiger asked, looking at me, obviously unconvinced.

"We're not?" Cyril looked entirely too skeptical.

"Are we?" Chaos asked rhetorically, I could feel him glaring at me even though I was sitting on his shoulder.

"We're not." I admitted reluctantly, pulling on his hair in revenge. "And we won't be tempted no matter how much I want to."

"You should be ashamed of yourself," Chaos turned towards Greiger, "Seducing a girl like that. She's half your age!"

"No way." Greiger shook his head, but had to accept reality as what head done dawned on the people around him and their expressions reflected as much. "That's not possible." He repeated.

He had seen the way Yuki looked at his body, with a sense of appreciation and greed that definitely did not belong to a thirteen-year-old. He still remembered when they first met, the short woman sitting on the porch looked at him from the neck down, her eyes resting on his pecs, abs, legs then circling back reluctantly to his face. That's not the actions of a teenager. Or so he thought.

He looked up hopefully, at the woman, girl. Despite her age, her interest may be the only thing that will save his family "Yuki-sama?" He prompted gently.

"Ahem," I cleared my throat, "Look do whatever you guys want." I muttered, then poked Chaos to go back inside.

"We'll figure out something," Felice scoffed with a chuckle, shaking her head.

"What happened to your Greiger rug?" Chaos teased.

"Oh yeah, almost forgot about that," I replied, "Greiger, you're gonna be a carpet for the foreseeable future, problem?"

"No Yuki-sama," Greiger replied automatically, though obviously not understanding what I meant.

"See," I gloated, sticking my tongue out at Chaos, "Greiger-carpet, get! Now let's go back, we should probably check on Yusei, and I need my beauty sleep."

* * *

 **A/N:** I was actually playing the Duelist of Roses the other day and remembered the whole 'get' thing. LOL. If you know what I'm talking about, you've obviously enjoyed this children's card game for way too long just like I have...

 **A/N 2:** Also, if you didn't understand the whole 'Greiger carpet' thing, don't worry about it. XD


	55. Difference Between Light and Dark

**Disclaimer:** I don't own YGO 5Ds

* * *

The harbors of the Satellite are usually filled lined with security from both sides. Tonight, a small section has been quarantined, to the growing unrest of the detainees. "This way," Luna guided Yusei to a completely non-discript woman waiting at the harbor.

"May I help you." The woman drawled, regarding Luna and Yusei with a polite condescension typical of Neo Dominians traveling in the Satellite. She had a pink bob cut, brown eyes hidden behind black horn-rimmed glasses in a way that reminded Yusei of his grade school principal.

"This is her. This is Ara, I'm sure of it!" Luna insisted while Yusei laughed awkwardly, pointing to a woman who clearly bore no resemblance to the Dark Signer. Both adults looked at Luna skeptically. They'd trust her more if she were a grown-up too! Luna thought, annoyed, being a kid sucks sometimes. She raised her hand, the mark of the Dragon glowing, soliciting a similar response on Yusei's arm, and the arm of the stranger.

"But y-you're different," Luna said hesitantly, "Your mind is clear, you're not controlled by that Monster. W-wait, that's not right, you're a Dark Signer!"

"There're much worse things than the Ruler of the Netherworld that's tried to get inside me," Ara said with a nuanced undertone that made Yusei blush, "I've resisted Divine's brainwashing for years, this monster is quite harmless, mentally speaking."

"So you're free!" Yusei exclaimed, "Will you join us then in defeating this monster!"

Ara snorted in laughter. Realizing her explicit refusal, Yusei stepped up, physically blocking her way to the harbor.

His ignorant confidence makes her want to bang her head against the wall, made worse so because it was Yusei freaking Fudo.

Ara was lucky. By any and all standards, Ara has been lucky beyond belief. She had be talented, attractive, resilient, with Lady Fortune smiling down on her at every turn. That's what turned her from another kid in the Satellite to controlling the busiest pier in the Satellite, to a crucial member of the Zephyrs. It had taken strategy, planning, years of dedication and hard work, not to mention an unreasonable amount of luck for her to be standing at the Satellite shores right now.

Then there's the select few who were destined to succeed due to no virtues of their own. In Yusei's case, being selected by a powerful dragon for no reason other than his birth. It's no different than Neo Dominians enjoying their luxuries simply for being stuck in Neo Domino when Zero Reverse happened, but for some reason, it irritated her more.

"Another Chosen One eager to prove themselves for the greater good," She thought and said as much.

"I am Yusei Fudo, I take it you've heard of me." Yusei replied with a haughty tilt of his chin, "Yes, I was Chosen by the Crimson Dragon, a literal God, to defend the Light of this world from the encroaching Darkness. You were converted out of Pity, by Roman. It's not the same, is it? Now thanks to me, you have a chance to rectify the situation. Prove yourself, on behalf of Dark Signers and your Dark God. Prove that you're worthy of this dimension, or at least prove you're not completely useless in this battle your god is about to lose."

Luna watched wide-eyes at this side Yusei she's never seen before.

Ara's giggles turned into a full-throated roar of laughter at Yusei's solemn challenge, his blatant attempt to taunt her into a duel was utterely adorable.

"It's lucky you met me," She said when she finally stopped laughing, "Devack would have killed you for that alone. Me, on the other hand, I don't care about who wins or loses, what difference does it make? If the Neo Domino Director of Security changes, why should the average satellite care?"

"What? This is totally different!" Yusei repeated incredulously, "The Crimson Dragon and the Signer Dragons had fought for humanity five thousand years ago to seal the Ruler of the Netherworld. If released, the Monster will destroy this dimension and all life in it!"

"You decision being based on unreliable words from monsters nobody has ever seen, passed on by their even less reliable emissaries." Ara clarified further,"You learned all of this from Rex Goodwin, correct? The same man who left the Satellite, left all of us, suffering on the brink of life since he became the Director of Sector Security ten years ago. How did you survive so long in the Satellite while being so trusting?"

"But even Yuki said-" Yusei began, but was quickly cut off.

"And she knows the truth, how?"

Yusei sputtered. He can Feel the Crimson Dragon through his mark and therefore trusts in its intentions, but Ara could easily argue that feelings can be deceiving.

"Convince me then," Yusei activated his duel disk. "Show me your conviction in the God you fight for. Convince me It's the right choice for humanity."

"Oh, don't get me wrong, I don't trust either of them," Ara shrugged off Yusei's outrage. She frankly saw no difference between the Crimson Dragon or the Ruler of the Netherworld, both were creatures that existed beyond this world trying to control the human race. Roman preaches on and on about the Glory the Netherworld God would bring into the world, just like the Servants of the Crimson Dragon exults over the accomplishments of their Master. Both sides are drowning in their own spit*, and there's no proof who's right. Especially since there're no historical records of either creature, even if she assumes written records to be reliable.

"Then there's no reason you would resist my request for a game."

"Sure," Ara conceded, because no matter which god wins, she's already in a position where she cannot lose.

* * *

 **Turn 1: Ara's turn**

"I'll start by putting a card face-down, that's all." Ara was confident for a reason, she had studied the decks of most well-known duelists in the Satellite, Yusei was good, but he wasn't going to be good enough.

 **Turn 2: Yusei's Turn**

Yusei seems well-prepared for this duel as well.

"First, I discard Tuning Ware (lv1, 100/100) to my graveyard to special summon, **Quickdraw Synchro (lv5, 700/1400)** to the field, in attack mode. This allows me to special summon **Doppel Warrior** from my hand. Next, I'll summon **Junk Synchron (lv3, 1400/700)** to the field and with his special ability, **Tuningware** comes back from the graveyard!"

"I tune my level 3 Junk Synchron with my level 2 Dopple Warrior to synchro summon, the level 5 **Junk Warrior (lv5, 2100/1600)** in attack mode! Because of my Tuning Ware , my Junk Warrior gains 100 attack points. When Dopple Warrior is released in the synchro summon, he leaves behind **2 Dopple Tokens (lv1, 400/400)** , these tokens also add their strength to Junk Warrior, bringing my warrior's attack to 3000! Next, I tune my level 5 Quickdraw Synchro, with 1 Doppel Tokens and Lv 1 Tuningware, to bring forth, **Nitro Warrior (lv7, 2800/1800)**! Because Tuningware was used in a synchro summon, I get to draw one card.

Yusei: Hand 3, field 2 (Nitrowarrior, Junk Warrior)

"Wow," Luna gasped, completely overwhelmed by the series of moves . She knew Yusei was good, but she's never seen him this good. Yusei summoned two powerful monsters in the first turn and it only cost him two cards to do it! Luna clenched her fists in determination. She's a Signer too, so as long as she trains hard, she'll be as good as Yusei when she is his age!

"Nitro Warrior, attack directly, Dynamite Crunch!"

"I activate AbyssSqual to special summon **Mermail Abysslinde (lv3, 1500/1200)** in defense mode." Ara still looked like everything was under control as she flipped over her lone face-down card. Mermail Abysslinde was plowed over by Nitro Warrior without further incident. "When Abysslinde is sent to the graveyard, she allows me to special summon a Mermail monster from my graveyard, and I bring out **Mermail Abysspike (lv4, 1600/800)** in defense mode. With his effect, I'll discard Atlantean Heavy Infantry to the graveyard and add Mermail Abysslinde back to my to hand."

"Now that there's a defense-position monster on the field, Nitro Warrior changes that monster to attack mode and can attack again!"

"Not so fast, Atlantean Heavy Infantry allows me to destroy one face-up card on the field, and I choose your Nitro Warrior."

"My Nitro Warrior may be gone, but his effect remains. Your monsters is now in attack mode. Junk Warrior, destroy Mermail Abysspike!"

The merman scattered as Junk Warrior's scrap fist made impact, hitting Ara for 1400 life points.

"Before I end my turn, I'll leave two cards face-down on the field."

Yusei: Hand 1, field 2 (Junk Warrior, Doppel Token), face down x2

"Yusei, that was really good," Luna watched wide-eyed as this children's card game went far beyond what she was used to, "I could barely follow your moves."

 **Ara: Turn 3 Ara 2600 Yusei 4000**

Ara Hand 6, field -

"Then you'll certainly have trouble with my turn, but I'll go slow." Ara smirked. "I summon **Deep Sea Diva (lv2, 200/400)** , her ability brings out **Neptabyss the Atlantean Prince (lv1, 800/0)** from my deck to the field. When he is summoned, I can send Atlantean Dragoons (lv4, 1800/0) from my deck to the graveyard and add Atlantean Heavy Infantry from my deck to my hand. When discarded to the graveyard, Atlantean Dragoons can add a sea-serpent to my hand from the deck, in this case Mermail Abyssmegalo."

Luna was beginning to look a little lost, but Yusei was still following along and he was recognizing his precarious situation.

"I special summon **Mermail Abyssmegalo (lv7, 2400/1900)** by discarding Atlantean Marksman and Atlantean Heavy Infantry from my hand. When discarded, Atlantean Marksman and Atlantean Heavy Infantry destroys your face-down card and your face-up Junk Destroyer respectively."

One of Yusei's two face-down cards, Urgent Tuning, was destroyed, leaving him with only one card on the field. Next, I activate Mermail AbyssMegalo's effect to tribute Neptabyss the Atlantean Prince to revive **Atlantean Marksman (lv3, 1400/0)**.

"Mermail Abyssmegalo, destroy Doppel Token."

The hollow illusion of a warrior with a measly 400 defense points was plowed over.

"Now, attack Yusei directly!"

"Activate trap, Defense Draw." Yusei activated his face-down card to negate Mermail Abyssmeegalo's effect. "Not only is your attack in vain, but I get to draw a card."

"Atlantean Marksman, attack Yusei directly!" Ara didn't bother with any more taunts, the field advantage is far too obvious. Her merman sliced at Yusei's life points, "When Atlantean Marksman deals damage in battle, I can special summon **Atlantean Dragoons (lv4, 1800/0)** from my deck to the field. He's ready for battle too."

The second attack cost Yusei another 1800, bringing his life points down to 800.

Luna whimpered.

 **Yusei Turn 4: Ara 2600 Yusei 800**

Ara Hand 4, field Mermail Abyssmegalo, Atlantean Marksman, Atlantean Dragoon

Yusei Hand 3, field scrap iron scarecrow

"I play the spell One for One, to discard Jet Synchron and special summon **Tuningware (lv 1, 100/300)** from the graveyard. Next, I send Quillbolt hedgehog to the graveyard to special summon **Jet Synchron (lv1, 500/0)** to my field. I tune my level 1 Tuningware with my level 1 Jet Synchron to synchro summon **Formula Synchron (lv2, 200/1500)**. With this move alone, I get to draw two cards, one for Tuningware and one for Formula Synchron. I also get to add Junk Synchron from my deck to my hand, thanks to the effect of Jet Synchron."

"Not bad," Ara admitted, not everybody can put together a +3 advantage like this.

"I summon **Junk Synchron (lv3)** from my hand, and he brings his friend **Doppel Warrior (lv2)** from the graveyard back to my field again."

"Now, I tune my level 3 Junk Synchron with my level 2 Doppel Warrior to synchro summon, the level 5 **Junk Warrior** , also creating 2 Doppel Tokens (lv1, 400/400) on the field. You know the drill, Junk Warrior gains attack points for every level 2 or below monster on my field, so this time, he gains 1000 attack points! I'll also tune my level 2 Formula Synchron with my two level 1 Doppel Tokens to synchro summon, **Armory Arm (lv4, 1800/1000)**.

Yusei chewed on his lower lips, studying Ara's field. She had three monsters on her field, Mermail AbyssMegalo, Atlantean Marksman and Atlantean Dragoons, all in attack mode. Three monsters and no face-downs. He wasn't informed on the entirety of story surrounding the Signers and Dark Signers, but he did know that if somebody is defeated in a Shadow Duel, they would die. Those defeated by the Dark Signers can be brought back to life when the Dark Signers themselves were defeated, he didn't know what happens to Dark Signers who lost outright. Tono and her team had gone to considerable lengths to avoid that, Yusei had to assume it was for good reason.

Yusei Hand 2; field: Junk Synchron, Armory Arm

"Junk Warrior, attack and destroy Mermail Abyssmegalo! Scrap Fist!" Yusei commanded, speaking so quickly as though he was afraid he'd change his mind. With his enhanced attack, Junk Warrior's 3100 attack points crushed his opponent's 2400 attack.

"Wait, what?" Ara asked, shocked for the first time in... She couldn't remember, but it's been a really, really long time, maybe a decade now, probably longer than Luna's been alive. Her large blue eyes made her look almost innocent, for the fraction of a second.

"Now Armory Arm, destroy Atlantean Marksman." Yusei continued, undeterred. The rocket launched at Atlantean Marksman, destroying the monster along with 400 of Ara's life points.

Ara paused thoughfully before posing her question, "Are you okay? Are you severely ill such that it's affecting your mental ability?"

"What's wrong?" Luna asked, not having understood the conversation.

Yusei coughed, looking defiant but also a little embarrassed. Ara imagines that's what she would have looked like if she was caught doing something good twenty-years ago, assuming she did good things back then.

"Armory Arm has a special ability, in that it can be equipped to another monster, increasing its target's attack by 1000 points. In addition, when that target destroys a monster, the attack points of the destroyed monster is deducted from your opponent's life points."

"So..." Luna looked at the field uncertainly, "If Yusei had equipped Armory Arm to his Junk Warrior, he would have won the game?"

Ara didn't comment.

"Then why didn't he do that?" Luna asked.

"That's what I want to know." Ara conceded.

Together, Junk Warrior and Armory Arm only dealt 1300 damage, when Yusei must have thought they could have dealt 4100.

"I don't know what happens to Dark Signers when they're defeated in a Shadow duel," Yusei said slowly, sounding almost apologetic.

"We die." Ara cut him off, irritated. Her annoyance originating from confusion more than anything else, "Just like everybody who loses a Shadow Game."

"Only the others are brought back to life after when Dark Signers are defeated."

"And your concern being..." Ara trailed off skeptically, "Who'll save the murderers?"

"Murderers?" Luna repeated.

"Us. Dark Signers. Sending mortals to the Shadow Realm. Hence murderers." Ara was being unusually crude, if also unusually patient.

"You didn't choose to kill," Yusei insisted, "You were put into a situation where you felt like you had no choice. I want to give you that choice again, Ara, a choice to go back to the side of the Light, so your soul would no longer be burdened by the biddings of the Netherworld Monster."

"I completely understand everything you're trying to say," Ara assured him with a smile, "I just don't agree with a word of it. A lot is riding on my choice right now, isn't it? More than you have a right to wager."

"I have faith in my friends," Yusei replied candidly, "If I do lose this duel, they'll still stop you. So all that's on the line is my life and yours. I'm betting there's still some Light left inside you, and for that, I'm willing to put my life on the line."

"How very... Characteristically stupid of you." Ara commented. Naive and unnecessary though it may be, it would be a shame for such stupidity to die.

Hand 1, field Junk Warrior equipped w/ Armory Arm, 1 face down

 **Ara Turn 5: Ara 1300, Yusei 800**

Ara Hand 5, field Atlantean Dragoon

"Looks like it's not your lucky day." Ara showed Yusei the card she just drew- Earthbound Immortal Aslla Piscu.

"Let me start by playing Salvage," Ara doesn't look like she's holding back, "So I can bring Atlantean Marksman and Neptabyss, the Atlantean Prince from the graveyard to my hand. Next, I'll special summon **Mermail Abyssleed (lv7, 2700/1000)** by discarding Atlantean Marksman, Neptabyss, the Atlantean Prince  & Mermail Abyssgunde to the graveyard."

"In order, Atlantean Marksman can destroy your facedown card," Yusei's Scrap-iron Scarecrow was shredded to bits, "Atlantean Prince special summon **Atlantean Marksman (lv3, 1400/0)** back onto the field, and Mermail Abyssgunde allows me to special summon a Mermail monster from the graveyard, so I summon **Mermail AbyssMegalo (lv7, 2400/1900)**. Not that it matters, since I'll be tributing both Mermail Abyssleed and Mermail AbyssMegalo to summon my immortal- **Earthbound Immortal Aslla Piscu (lv10, 2500/2500)**.

Ara- hand 1, field Earthbound Immortal Aslla Piscu, Atlantean Dragoons, Atlantean Marksman

Yusei- hand 1, field Junk Warrior equipped with Armory Arm (3100+1000/1600)

"When Atlantean Dragoons is on the field, Atlantean Marksman can attack directly." Ara explained, at a wave of her hand, Atlantean Marksman (lv3, 1400/0) charged towards Yusei. She waited for Yusei's counter, which never came.

"Wait!" She called out, her monster pausing at her words, "Where's your defense?"

Yusei shrugged, gesturing to the slot his Scrap-Iron Scarecrow used to be, "That was it."

"That was..." Ara resisted the urge to bang her head against he duel disk, suddenly feeling like Yusei desperately needed a parental figure to teach him not to be so ridiculously reckless, or trust strangers unconditionally or... " _KIDS."_ She summarized her feelings into a single word.

"I discard Mermail Abyssnerei from my hand," Ara admitted, resigned. "Her effect destroy Atlantean Marksman and instead adds his attack points to Atlantean Dragoons, increasing his attack to 3200." A completely useless number given Junk Warrior's attack still stood at 4100.

"I knew you wouldn't go through with it." Yusei grinned. "There is Light and Hope inside you all this time."

"No you didn't." Ara deadpanned. "And it's not very smart to provoke your opponent when they can still kill you."

* * *

"You attacked with Atlantean Marksman."

Ara started, looking at the audience who had gathered to see them duel. Galen stepped out of the crowd, followed closely by Greiger.

"You attacked with Atlantean Marksman instead of your Immortal." Galen elaborated. Ara would have been unable to stop her immortal's attack.

"Greiger?" Ara looked down at her ex-colleague, whose Dark Signer mark is now conspicuously absent. Merely mortal, no wonder neither her nor Yusei noticed the pair. "So you've defeated another Dark Signer, do you expect my congratulations?"

"I would be glad to duel her, Galen-sama," Greiger offered hurriedly, obviously having had no idea why he was brought here.

Ara studied him, then Galen, "Yuki knows neither of you can defeat me, so what are you doing here?"

"Greiger's our gesture of good will," Galen offered with a sheepish laugh, "Yuki said you'd understand when you see him."

Greiger looked slightly affronted.

"Oh?" Ara paused, comprehension slowly dawning on her face, "What is he going to do now that he's mortal again?" She asks.

"I dunno,' Galen admitted, "We need people in all fronts, but Greiger isn't really trained for anything. So… Babysitting maybe? I've been telling Yuki for weeks that we need another vice principal for the school now that I'm helping with the Security training too."

"Vice principal," Ara was amused. Unlike Galen, she could appreciate the influence a vice principal would have, as the school is no doubt training the first generation that would be loyal to the Zephyrs rather than a particular city state. The generation that would soon take over all essential posts in the regime. There's a reason why Yuki had insisted on being the principal despite rarely showing up. "Very well, I will return to the Zephyrs, and to the side of Justice." She winked, causing Yusei to blush a deep crimson.

"Earthbound Immortal Aslla Piscu, attack Junk Warrior!" As soon as her immortal disappeared from the field, she snapped her own duel disk in half. The receding lines on her face signaled the loss of the powers she had used to eradicate its very existence from her body.

"Wait, that's it?" Yusei stammered. "I-I mean I'm glad you made the right choice but, what just happened?"

By the looks on the faces of her audience, Galen was the only one who understood.

"If Yuki took Greiger back, she should be welcoming Ara with open arms." Galen explained.

Yuki had reassured him as much before he came. Despite Ara's complicated employment history, she had never been the type to take undue risks. Her choice to work to Divine, then Yuki, then the dark signers (i.e. three progressively more questionable, borderline-legal organizations) can best be described as circumstantial. As such, she won't choose to give up the current world and work for an unknown monster with an unreliable promise to build a new world.

"I have a question," Ara asked as an afterthought, "What would have happened if I insisted on being a Dark Signer."

Galen licked his canines with a sly grin, "I don't really understand the plan, but Nervin promises me that it won't be pretty. Devack might be able to tell you more about that."

* * *

"Let me go!" Trudge struggled against his handcuffs, surrounded by what must be 20% of our team "I'm from Neo Domino, I'm Sector! You can't treat me like this!"

"You're trespassing with the intent to steal my property, I'm well within my rights to detail you." I looked at Trudge seriously.

"Do you want to-" Chaos made a slitting motion along his throat.

"Wait! No, you're not actually gonna do that, right? You're just messing with me?" Trudge shouted, now truly scared. Chaos didn't look like he was joking.

"Let me think about it," I replied, "He didn't actually do any damage." On the other hand, he just tried to blow up the Core of the Momentum.

"I'll quadriple security around the Core." Chaos assured me, "Nothing will get past me."

* * *

 **A/N:** I think this is the longest I've gone without an update, sorry about the wait. In my defense, I've been ridiculously busy  & stressed with almost nothing to show for it recently, and life's just been hectic overall. I've also found that I've just been very inefficient for some reason, probably the stress, or at least I'm attributing it to the stress. The other night, I washed down my multiple vitamins with Bicardi from the bottle and I thought, well, that feels about right, this is my life now... XD

Also, I just got back into the Phoenix Wright fandom, game 5&6 aren't as good as the earlier ones but they're better than nothing.

 **A/N 2:** While we, as the audience, knows the Crimson Dragon is good (per writers), Yusei really didn't. He really did hear everything from Rex Goodwin and his proxies, whom he had no reason to believe.


	56. Human vs Magic round 2

Disclaimer: I do no own YGO 5Ds

* * *

Sometimes, things just work out.

The Zephyrs have never been so divided and occupied. Yusei and Luna left to stop Ara from leaving the Satellite, Galen and Greiger followed soon after. Yuki and most of the Zephyr's fledgling security team is currently interrogating Trudge. Akiza and the remaining members is on red alert tracking Devack as he makes his way across Domino City straight towards the Development.

"Domino official business," Mina flashed her badge coldly at the guard, the woman stepped aside without question, just as she would have in Domino City.

The Zephyrs is too new to have erased all influence of Neo Domino City, Mina's badge still holds power here. Of course, it also has something to do with the limited training time and borderline-literate population in the Satellite from which the Zephyrs recruit. The Zephyr's employee even offered her a map to their building- and that's when Mina Tresdale understood the importance of a well-trained workforce.

In Yuki's defense, there was a tiny detail regarding Mina that's very easy to overlook in the anime, but remains glaringly clear in this world- She's the secretary of the Director of Security of Neo Domino City, read: third in command to the dictator of a military-controlled local government. That's right, Rex Goodwin isn't the 'mayor' of Domino, he's technically the leader of its security force. He just 'needed' to control its economy and government when the city was 'in a state of emergency' ten years ago, a state from which it apparently never emerged.

Personal secretaries hold a lot of power, when you're the personal secretary of a militant dictator, both in this world and the last.

Also, it was really, _really_ hard to find an applicant who isn't, and wasn't likely to become a spy for any of the major corporation or global powers. So Mina continued unhindered.

Director Goodwin has requested that Mina destroy the Momentum in the Satellite. For the greater good, he had said, because no rogue insurgent group should control a weapon like the Momentum, and she agrees. She's not as convinced by the 'it's the best way to force them to duel the Dark Signers' angle. She's convinced the Dark Signers are real, she'll even believe they can summon real monsters, but claiming they can cause the destruction of the world seems a bit of the stretch, considering this 'terrifying evil organization' never left the Satellite in the past 17 years.

Rex Goodwin's true concern, of course, was that the Zephyrs might activate the Momentum if they were defeated by his big brother, in a suicidal move to prevent the Ruler of the Netherworld from crossing over, thereby ruining Rex's plans in the process. Mina didn't know that, she might not have believed him if she did.

She stepped inside the Momentum storage facility, letting the door close behind her to shut the chaos out, looking confident enough that nobody stopped to question her. Yep, they definitely need a well-trained workforce and a reliable, thorough management system. Nervin usually controls this area, but he is otherwise occupied at the moment. So she walked unhindered into the control room.

She could see the Momentum Core on the monitor, heavily guarded and well beyond her reach, still buzzing with energy that now fuels this city. But the rest of the machine is another story. If the Core of the Momentum is the engine, the machines in this entire building is the rest of the car. On its own, the Core of the Momentum is useless.

"Sorry Jack," Mina muttered before snapping off the neck of her Red Dragon Archfiend pendant and propping open his belly to retrieve the small bomb inside. She pasted the bomb to the underside of the control panel and quickly retreated. It took less than three seconds before she heard the muffled explosion. The Momentum whirled to a stop. It'll take the Satellite weeks to rebuild the damaged accessories, given Director Goodwin enough time to contain the situation in a much more practical fashion.

* * *

Devack took one last look at the duel tower which he was supposed to guard, then turned around sharply, making his way towards the heart of Satellite commercial district and the Zephyrs headquarters.

Roman had asked him to stay with the duel towers, wait for the Signers to show up, and play the Destined Game. So their Fated Duel would decide the outcome of this world, a Battle of their skills and the powers of their respective gods. A Battle he should patiently wait for, and let it decide his Fate.

There was only one problem with that plan, he could lose.

Though he had the wholehearted support of his entire deck, it hadn't been enough. Duel monsters can't even decide the results of their own gladiator games, the realization was devastatingly depressing.

But he has to accept reality, especially since he had lost once before. Greiger was right, he wasn't the duelist that he thought he was. Maybe none of them were. Greiger also cautioned him against duels against non-Signers, and he was right about that also. Tono and her croonies have no respect for the game, willing to do whatever it takes to win. The Dark Signers had already suffered many losses for their barbaric ways. He had no intentions of being its next victim.

While Devack had never taken his own life too seriously, he was the only one fighting for the future of Duel Monsters. He cannot bear the thought of them being trapped for another five millennia, being used as fodder in humanity's games. Instead, he would choose the game this time. Zephyrs are excellent duelists, but none of them could withstand a true attack from his immortal!

Standing at the entrance of the Zephyrs building, Devack took out his deck, laughing violently at a joke only he could understand. He ignored the Zephyr Security Agents who rushed out to gawk at the cloaked maniac (their training manual does not yet include what to do when somebody laughs maniacally in front of the building) and selected one of his favorite monsters, **Fighter Ape (lv5, 1900/1200)** as well as three copies of **Mad Dogs of Darkness (lv4, 1900/1400)**. He placed the cards almost reverently into the unseen space in front of them, the cards circled him as though protecting their master.

Four duel monsters appeared in a flash. Three dogs the size of lions stood in front of Devack pawing at the cement, leaving marks several inches deep every time. Fighter Ape was not King Kong sized, but at 11 feet, the beast still towers over mere mortals, the fire radiating from his fur flew off in flecks with movement, decorating the entire yard with scorch marks.

Zephyrs Securities scattered and ran as fast as they could, screaming as they did so. That _was_ part of their training manual, in fact that was in the first chapter, highlighted and bolded: 'run and scream if you see real duel monsters'. The things to which we've had to resort.

Devack walked firmly towards the entrance, his canines (from hell) clearing everything in his path. Alarms blaring as he passed while mortals scrambled for their lives. Like rats scrambling to safety before an earthquake. He let them flee. He had no interest in destruction, only to defeat the Signers and fulfill his duty to the Duel Monsters. As long as he physically destroys every Signer and their decks, the Dark Signers cannot lose.

"Stop!" Akiza ran out of the compound, dressed in the red dress and high-heeled combat boots that have become the trademark of the Black Rose.

"I'm glad you made it, I've been looking for you." Devack nodded graciously at the opponent he selected. Izinski is the only person within the Zephyrs capable of inflicting actual damage, after he destroys her, nothing in the rest of the Satellite would be able to stand up to his powers!

"Well, you found me, let's duel!" Akiza stood her ground despite the screaming monkey and screaming humans around her. She tried to activate her duel disk before realizing Devack had none.

"I do plan on playing a game with you, as is appropriate for the Battle between a Signer and a Dark Signer, though I thought we might do something a little different." Devack waved and his monsters pulled back to gather around him. "A real Shadow duel, one of which you are fond, if your reputation is to be trusted."

"A real Shadow duel? With real monsters?" Akiza repeated. The request wasn't entirely unexpected, though everybody had been hoping it didn't have to come to this.

"Indeed," Devack agreed, "Let's free our Shadow Realm allies from the lines and grids of the field, and instead release them freely into this world for an actual fight of their desires."

Akiza understood. There would no rules in this game, no draws, no graveyards, no limitations except as limited by their respective powers and deck.

She pulled out her own deck in response, " **Blue Rose Dragon (lv4, 1600/1200)** , emerge!"

The blue feathered reptile the size of an SUV appeared at her human's orders, hovering at about two-story high, baiting the dogs on the ground with her vine-like tail. The old (aka first series, first season), abandoned dueling myth of flying monsters having an inherent advantage over land monsters is revived here, as the Mad Dogs of Darkness leaped up into the air, just failing to reach Akiza's dragon.

"Beast Fangs," Devack said, reaching for the card inside his deck. The teeth in one of Devack's pet dogs seem to have given it super strength grew another three inches, giving it an even more blood-thirsty look. The dog faked a left, and when Blue Rose Dragon dodged right, fell into waiting paws.

The rest is basically what you'd expect when a pack of wild dogs catch something edible. Without the dueling field , the defeated monsters were not turned into light. Blue Rose Dragon's blood spattered onto the dented courtyard. Akiza looked sick, turning around from the gory sight.

"If you throw your monsters into these fights, pay them the respect of looking at their pain." Devack commanded.

Akiza turned back, Devack was right, she can't admit defeat. Her loss would be the first Domino (no pun intended) that brings down the whole of Satellite and possibly the rest of the world.

"I summon Twilight Rose Knight and Black Rose Witch, and tune them to synchro summon, **Black Rose Dragon**!"

Two humanoid monsters barely entered into the real world before their forms faded out, merging into a 5 meter tall dragon. Akiza petted her synchro monster, her namesake and her pride. The dragon stretched her wings, accidentally knocking down two balcony and a flagpole in the process. She rained fire onto Devack's monsters without being commanded, the three dogs squealed in pain as they were burned to a crisp.

Akiza stared at the ashes on the ground, mixing with the flesh and blood of what's left of her Blue Rose Dragon. Akiza thought the dogs had looked like Great Danes she owned as a kid. She panted heavily, trying to suppress the waves of nausea washing over her, from exertion and the sickeningly appetizing stench of burnt meat in the air.

"They will return unharmed to the Shadow Realm, though you'll still pay for the pain you incurred. I play the spell Dark Wave to change the level of my Fighter Ape to -1. Next I bring forth **Dark Tuner Dark Ape (lv2,0/0)**. I dark tune these two monsters to dark synchro summon, the one born from the darkness who will become the supreme ruler to lead all of creation into the negative world! **Zeman the Ape King (lv-7, 2500/1800)**." Devack selected the cards from his deck, pressing each card into space as he activated their powers.

The creature that appeared was barely Akiza's height, hovering overhead and dressed in human clothes (armor and a cloak, so what passes for human clothes), its staff radiating an eerie green light. Zeman looked frail yet even mortals could sense he was ostentatiously more powerful than the dragon ten times his size.

"Now my old friend, destroy Black Rose Dragon!" Devack commanded.

"Activate trap," Akiza allowed her powers to spread out, linking to and triggering the trap she had set earlier, "Widespread Ruin!"

Black Rose Dragon lifted the tip of her wings to support Akiza before she collapsed. Actions cost real magic in this fight, every spell, trap and monster further drains Akiza's limited strength. Though Akiza had been in the habit of raining devastation onto mortals, she was not experienced in fighting with an equal.

That's not to say Devack was her equal. Even with a few moves, Akiza could feel Devack's magic overwhelming her own. In a real fight, this meant he could summon more monsters, activate more spells and traps, and do so much faster than she could.

"Then I have to play Guard Mines," Devack had the leisure to explain the card. "When one of my monster would be destroyed by a card effect, I can negate the effect and deal you 500 damage." He pointed to the card he had set earlier as the mines hurling towards Akiiza. There was no life point counter in this fight, instead, the explosion manifested as physical, bone-crushing pain that almost brought her down to her knees.

Zeman floated ever closer, his staff pointed in Akiza's direction.

"Hey! You looking for a Signer?" A rock bonked the monkey over the head. A non-magical, run-of-the-mill rock. Anger radiated off of the monkey, as much as is it possible for anger to radiate off of monkeys clad in Renaissance gear.

Jack sat on his motorcycle, with one leg on the ground for support, "Well, here I am, come and get me, you stupid human-wannabe!" He threw another rock. This time, the monkey didn't even use any magic, he looked at the rock and it evaporated. A wave of his staff sent a bolt of lightning Jack's way, Jack was already racing at 80 miles per hour, just fast enough to evade the duel monster.

The monkey turned away from Jack, pointing his staff in Devack's direction. A purple light shot out of his staff just before a gun shot rang out, shielding Devack in a mist of light before Crow's bullet hit the magical shield and fell in vain.

"How pitiful," Devack shook his head, "Did you think a Signer with no magical strength would tilt this duel in your favor? I expected such underhanded schemes from the likes of you, so I had been prepared. Nothing in the physical realm may cross this barrier my duel monster had erected. Black Rose's defeat by mundane anaesthetic gases is well-known among those of us with real power."

Crow nodded to Akiza, who signaled her understanding of the situation. Crow promptly ran towards the outside, Jack followed on his duel runner, leading Zeman in another direction. Akiza retreated as well, towards the empty warehouse complex close-by.

"Now, it's time to unleash the Gods onto this world. I play the spell, Fires of Doomsday! To bring two Doomsday Tokens into this world! I sacrifice these tokens to my Lord! When Shadows are swallowed by even darker Shadows, the curtains open, to reveal, a world without light! Accept my tributes my Immortal, come forth and claim your rightful crown!"

Yuki has a habit of mocking Dark Signer chants, a habit had influenced her team as well. However, as Devack spoke, Akiza could feel souls of duel monsters and humans alike being drained into the gap in the sky, until the air thickened with magic, until every breath weighed down her lungs. Devack's Monkey god, **Earthbound Immortal Cusillu (lv10, 2800/2400)** crawled out from the gap and into this world.

Black Rose Dragon cawed at the new monster, looking at her opponent as a parrot might look at King Kong. Nonetheless, the bird (dragon) flew in front of Akiza, trying to protect her human, trying to summon the courage to even mount an attack.

"It's no use. Your human is as weak as you are, and her mortal friends won't last much longer." Devack said firmly.

It took Akiza a while to understand Devack was speaking to Black Rose Dragon, she ran her fingers through the feathers of her dragon.

Black Rose Dragon took off to pick Jack up before he was hit by Zeman's attack, then flew directly towards Devack, no doubt hoping to attack him directly.

"I won't give up," Akiza activated her facedown trap , "Activate, Metalmorph!"

Devack watched, amused as the metal armor materialized and flew towards Black Rose Dragon. Earthbound Immortal Cusillu swept her tail towards Black Rose Dragon, forcing the dragon to dodge out of the way before the magic of Akiza's trap reached her. Cusillu grasped the red dragon by the feathers on her tail, and with a casual twist, broke off the dragon's neck.

The metal armor continued on its course, encasing Devack inside its protection instead.

Devack allowed the magic to wash over him, enjoying the strength it granted. He had recognized the protective nature of the trap, therefore did not bother to flee from its confines.

"Time to finish this battle!" Devack's voice boomed from inside his armor, "Zeman-"

"I can't agree more."

Devack heard a slightly nasal voice coming from of the the further buildings within the complex.

"Ah-choo!" Nervin sneezed, completely ruining his attempt to look cool (he's beginning to think it'll never happen), "Whatever." He hung his head, discouraged as he pushed down on the button.

Devack felt an invisible force pulling him back, until his back rammed against the building, his arms immobilized at his side by forces unseen, stopping him from even reaching his deck.

"Activate trap, Solemn Judgement!" Acutely aware the of threat, he immediately activated the trap he had set. As his last line of defense this costly trap can negate the effects of spells, traps and monsters, rendering him immune to any tricks up Izinski's sleeve. Yet the force on his body did not waver. "What magic is this?" He demanded, just before Jack's motorcycle crashed into the wall beside him, its rider running after it and into the courtyard.

Crow sighed in relief, Akiza sighed in disappointment.

"You guys gonna be okay?" Nervin ignored him, shouting across the courtyard to Akiza, "Not much more I can do at this point."

"You've done your part," Akiza laughed, "Now let me do mine!"

"You wanna do that some time today?" Jack demanded as he narrowly escaped another attack from Zeman.

"No problem, I summon **Queen Angel of Roses (lv7, 2400/1300)** , and equip her with Thorn of Malice. Now my angel, destroy Zeman the Ape King!" Zeman fell as an arrow pierced through his throat, falling onto the ground and showering Jack in his blood.

"Cusillu, attack!" Devack commanded despite his imprisoned state.

"Activate trap, Threatening Roar!" Akiza countered.

Whatever Devack chooses to call his monsters, he is their master, at least for the duration of the duel. Without their human's assistance, even Earthbound Immortals don't stand a chance against a duelist.

"Now my Queen Angel of Roses' special ability activates to destroy the weakest monster on the field, Earthbound Immortal Cusillu!" Akiza announced victoriously. An arrow from Queen Angel of Roses hit the Earthbound Immortal in the head, its powers trickling down the Immortal, finally breaking it into innumerable pieces, all of which retreated back into the Shadow Realm.

"Whose magics are you relying on?" Devack struggled in vain against his invisible bonds, refusing to give up even after the defeat of his Earthbound Immortal. The dark designs on his face faded, signaling the eradication of Earthbound Immortal's influence on him, yet he appeared no less adamant. His deck contained some of his closest friends, and he never needed to be persuaded to fight for their cause.

"It's an electromagnetic field," Nervin explained wearily as he made his way down to the pile of rubble that used to be a factory complex.

"What?" Devack obviously thought Nervin was mocking him, "There's no such card!"

"Ah..." Nervin scratched his hair with a half sigh, obviously not the first time he got this reaction, "So when electric charge is accelerated through a field, it generates magnetic force proportional to the current-"

"Don't worry about it," Crow chimed in, "We don't get it either. It's just a bunch of wires inside the building that somehow acts like a giant magnet when we turn it on. When Akiza put you inside this giant metal armor..."

"It's science," Akiza summarized succinctly, "The magic of humanity."

* * *

 **A/N:** Random epiphany: In the original YGO, Seto needed to defeat the Big 5 etc. It occurs to me that Big 5 more commonly refers to the 5 permanent members of the UN security council. It's funny if you're into that kinda thing XD

 **A/N 2** : For those of you no longer familar with physics, moving eletrons (ie current) creates a magnetic field and moving magnetic fields creates currents. Or something like that. I'm pretty sure it was one of the middle schools science projects. XD


	57. Roman Goodwin Part 1- Choice

Disclaimer: I do not own YGO 5Ds

* * *

"You could help out for a change you know," Galen grumbled, studying personnel files that were obviously too complex for him.

"I _could_ , yes," I was lying sideways on an arm chair, with my head and feet dangling off each side, a surprisingly comfortable position, "I'm just choosing not to." I figured I deserved some time off in light of all the crap I will soon be dealing with.

"We do need more help," Chaos agreed, "not _you_ of course, but we need to hire more people." I'm not sure if he's agreeing with me or insulting me.

"I don't think we can afford it," Blizzard whined, "I never knew we could have so much money and be so broke at the same time."

"I'd be happy to enter the pro leagues for the money," Kalin looked up hopefully from his pile, "I'm useless here anyways."

The room responded with a storm of things thrown his way.

"You're useless now," being the sensible one, Cyril explained, "But you will have learned all the ins and outs of city planning once you finish summarizing the architectural causes of limitations to Neo Domino's expansion in the past 17 years."

Kalin groaned and hit his head on the table, crushing five different editions of the Domino City map.

"I'll find us more people," I assured them, a little guilty at my own inactivity, "just give me a little time."

I wasn't _not_ doing anything, I just wasn't good at any of this stuff, and I didn't want to _become_ good at it.

There was the team Sun from the next arc but they don't seem to be good for anything; and team Unicorn though they probably want to stay pro; the Ragnork people all more or less have their own careers; the three stooges of Aporia might be worth a shot though, we desperately needed all the technology we can get.

"What's the point?" Blizzard answered pessimistically, "It's not like we can afford to hire them."

"So as soon as this Dark Signer business blows over, we'll open advancement opportunities to people already working for us," I assured him, "it would add very little to the current expenditure."

He didn't look convinced. The problem with that idea was, we've already recruited most people who are willing to be recruited and worth recruiting and promoted whoever we could. Since our meteoric rise, we've captured the heart of about a quarter of the Satellite, mostly of its younger population. The rest of Satellite has decided that we are the new, more successful Enforcers in the Satellite.

That is to say, we are the new violent gang that is despised by the majority of the Satellite and will soon be imprisoned. I imagine myself back in the other world, seeing my local YMCA kidnapping local leaders, buying the entire city and getting their hands on nuclear weapons...

I kinda understand where these people come from.

Nonetheless, a quarter of the Satellite is still more than a hundred thousand people. We have enough quantity, just not quality. Most positions related to management, planning, communications, research- basically anything except brainless manual labor, required reading, writing and basic arithmetic skills. Something I had uttered ignored, and just assumed all applicants would possess. The fact is, when you stop most education in an isolated area for 17 years, removed all jobs that required an education, when that area also had massive pollution of all kinds that selectively targets the older population... The point is, there isn't much of a literate workforce left.

Of course, trained workers from the outside would be crazy to come into the Satellite. Even casting aside our reputation as the backward, poverty-stricken hellhole, we still have to compete with our modern, industrialized neighbor, Neo Domino, for talent and an educated workforce. We're not winning.

Who knew running the Satellite would need so many people?

...I probably should have.

We're keeping things barely on track by intimidating gang leaders who ran the separate districts within the Satellite, therefore overcoming the lack of a sufficient police department or you know, any local presence, but even my crew know that's not a sustainable form of government.

To add further strain on a system already at the end of its ropes, I unilaterally dictated an ambitious plan of construction in an area north of the Satellite we had 'sanitized'. (It's not want it sounds like, I'm referring the pollution in the area that had been removed by Momentum, and not other much more ominous implications) Even though our Momentum is temporarily out of order, it'll take maybe a week or two to fix it, so my immigration plan continues. In case of social or political repercussions over our recent activities, we would still have some place to go. It's my back-up plan for after this Dark Signer arc.

This fiasco in the Satellite only reinforced my determinations.

I need a city filled only with those loyal to my cause, I mean our cause, a city that shares my ambitions and is eager to go in the directions I had decided. A place where my dreams for this world will finally become a reality, a place where many dreams will come true along with my own.

As such, we're going bankrupt. It took 9 figures to buy the land I wanted. Now it seems it would take much more than that to build this place up from the ground. Who knew construction, transportation, food, infrastructure, immigration, advertising and establishing an economic structure from scratch would be so expensive?

"We just got a fund transfer." Cyril said, looking up from his computer screen, sounding alarmed.

"I thought that's good news," Felice poked her head over and read off the screen, "A gift from the Shadows."

"Huh?" I looked at our bank account. That certainly more... digits than we had before. The comment section also included a time and place, signed RG. "Goodwin?"

"That's Roman's account," Kalin looked over my shoulders. "I can think of a couple of things Roman would want from you right now."

* * *

We drove to the site of Zero Reverse as Roman Goodwin requested. Yes, we can drive a car there now, even a convertible. Construction of the road to the old explosion site was completed last week. Satellite infrastructure was progressing at a breathtaking rate, but then again this is the world where a single person could build half a bridge, and three others could finish it. As per his request, we got here as soon as we could. It was already dusk. As even the debris of the once-prosperous Domino City is painted with a golden hue, one powerful underground organization awaited the leader of another, to decide on the looming destruction of the world or its revitalization. I personally thought this was needlessly melodramatic, but Roman Goodwin specified the time and place, I conceded. I did owe him that much.

I've always been conflicted about the older Goodwin, more than ever since I got into this world. As an even more complicated character than his brother. He was the trigger of the entire YGO 5Ds plotline and the battleground between the Crimson Dragon and the Netherworld Monster. He fell victim to the latter, thereby (apparently) dooming the entire world to Darkness, yet managed to cut off his own arm (!) to try and preserve hope for the upcoming war. He lead the Dark Signers, while guiding his younger brother to gather the forces of the Light. His entire life seems a futile attempt at fighting himself, trying and failing to correct his own mistakes.

It's fair to say that, even more than his brother, he is the mortal who held both Light and Darkness within his soul. Or you know, a normal human being. If he had been any other character in the show, the plot literally would not have happened.

Pertaining to me personally, which is what I really cared about, he saved a number of people I actually case about. Kalin certainly wouldn't be if it weren't for him, neither would Vincent and Ara. Losing the latter two due to my own stupidity might have destroyed me. Oh, and I guess Roman killed/saved Greiger. On the other hand, Roman Goodwin _is_ trying to take over (destroy? the dub was a little vague) the world, even if it's because he thinks it's his Destiny.

A nagging voice in the back of my mind continues to suggest that if this had been my previous world, I would never climb high enough in the social to be in his orbit. He might even have been a folk hero that I admired (since nobody knew who caused Zero Reverse). A much louder voice in the foreground reminds me that he's crazy and only a anime character. Both voices are absolutely correct.

Now, it's me against him.

Kalin and Greiger came with me. Neither were my top choice (my top choice as Akiza, that's it). But the rest of the Zephyrs were fully occupied maintaining our fragile pretense of peace in the Satellite, though Akiza promised she'd keep an eye on us and the spells she placed on us would buy us enough time for her to get here.

I waited for the leader of the Dark Signers to appear on the horizon, as if on cue, suspenseful music filling my ear drums. I jumped. Wait, it was real music, and it was Kalin, who is getting kicked by Greiger right now like he so rightfully deserved. I glared at the blue-haired duelist, if he didn't stop these antics, I'm taking away his mp3 player.

"Relax," Kalin laughed as he darted away from Greiger, using me as a human shield, "if I know Roman and I do, he's just here to talk business. He's completely brainwashed by the idea of destiny, he won't risk being defeated by any who's not a Signer."

"Are you certain?" Greiger paused in his pursuit and questioned Kalin's judgement, as they are so often questionable, "he might very well desire revenge prior to the final battle."

"Nah," Kalin stopped also, panting, "He doesn't look for vengeance, he's the only Dark Signer not consumed by revenge."

"He's consumed by destiny instead," I concurred. As an anime character, Roman was almost reasonable. He accepted fate, and did what little he could to turn it into the right direction, if only to be crushed in the process.

We all sobered up at the appearance of Roman's motorcycle on the horizon. To be fair, since the Momentum is providing the energy, there is no issue with pollution or wasting non-renewable resources.

Roman's motorcycle came to a screeching halt fifty feet away, the leader of the Dark Signers stepped off, and let his prized duel runner fall to the ground with a crash. Now I didn't need Kalin's music to stir up the tension. Greiger and Kalin both took a step forward and pushed me back.

I looked through the gap between their waists, these guys had really good bodies, even Kalin, you really wouldn't think it, but he does. Anyways, back on topic.

I poked my head out to get a better look at Roman, he looks different somehow. He hasn't exactly changed as far as appearances go (I looked him up my phone just to make sure), but the sense of dominance that radiated even from a digital rendition of the man was not found in the original. He looked more like that trainer from your neighborhood gym, or a little league coach who broke his arm in college and never went pro, as opposed to a powerful vessel for dark powers who long ago accepted his fate to destroy the world.

"Is this the right guy?" I poked Kalin, there were several incidences in the Yugioh series when one character magically changed appearances to imitate another. The only problem being, there were very few villains left at this stage of the plot, and it's still a little early for Aporia.

"I think so," Kalin sounded hesitant also, "it certainly looks like him."

"Yuki-sama, Kalin, Greiger," the Roman look-alike said each name with some difficulty, "I'm glad to see you've conceded to my request."

Now even Greiger looked unsure.

"How did I die?" Greiger asked while studying his once-employer.

"I strangled you," came the immediate reply. Roman Goodwin was beginning to look a little uneasy- very suspicious.

"And how did I die?" Kalin continued the line of questioning.

"Of starvation in the Facilities."

"What's your immortal?" Kalin persisted.

"Uru, the spider. What is the meaning of these questions?"

"We're thinking you're not the real Roman Goodwin," I poked my head out from behind Kalin again. "But I'm sure you'll understand, these answers aren't really conclusive. With all this magical powers going around, somebody could have read your mind, or -"

"Here," Roman Goodwin whipped out his deck and showed us a monster card displaying a giant pink spider, "This is my Immortal."

Kalin and Greiger both nodded thoughtfully as though that was foolproof identification, while I remained unconvinced. I think it was in the original series that one of Dartz's minions imitated Pegasus and took his deck. Plus, it _is_ just a trading card.

"You lived in Domino City and was a scientist, correct?" I asked.

"That's right," he nodded calmly, instead of summoning real monsters to destroy us, or immediately forcing us into a shadow duel. It's little things like this that leads me to suspect his identity.

"So show me your ID," I said casually.

"What?" The three men asked in unison.

"Show me your government issued ID, employee's card, anything of the kind." I smirked. It's highly unlikely that people here would steal 'trivial', practical items like a driver's license, when they're trying to steal somebody's identity. Face, body, deck, outfit, yes; government ID, what, are you crazy?

Kalin chuckled, even Greiger had a grin.

"Here, I think I kept most of my old stuff," Roman Goodwin looked amused as he surrendered his wallet.

It is consistent with the real Roman Goodwin's character to keep mementoes from his old life.

Kalin walked up to take the wallet, turning away when I tried to get it from him. He checked every crevice for possible traps, even went as far as sniffing it, finally showing me its contents from a distance.

The wallet contained several pieces of ID, all dated before Zero Reverse, plus one picture of Rex Goodwin. Who puts their brother's picture in their wallet? Honestly.

If this guy is pretending to be Roman Goodwin, he covered all his bases.

"So, Mr. Goodwin, why did you want to meet?" I asked. As a leader of an evil organization trying to take over the world, and not a salesperson at BestBuy (I wonder if BestBuy would go bankrupt sometime, then I'd have to pause before I remember what BestBuy was when reading this), he had been unnaturally accommodating.

The man opposite me managed a smile, making him look almost like a respectable member of society. Both Kalin and Greiger shuddered in disgust.

"I have a proposition," Roman Goodwin said confidently. Given his earlier patience, I didn't buy the act for a second.

"I'm listening," I smiled back, I like to think my smile was cuter.

"I've learned of your recent ventures in the Satellite. As an entrepreneur, I'm sure you are interested in what I have to offer."

I didn't speak, just looked at him with dead eyes. Greiger scoffed quietly at the idea, our current projects had far exceeded the scope of the Dark Signers' influence.

"You have nothing left," Kalin answered for the three of us.

"Branches all over the world, thousands of devoted members, million in precious metals, I wouldn't call it nothing. To take over the Dark Signers would save you years in your eventual rule."

"Just tell me what you want," I said exasperatedly, 'For the last time, I'm not trying to take over the world' is what I would have said a couple of weeks ago, by now, I've given up on explaining that to everybody I meet. I'm always met with the same insincere noises of agreement.

"You have saved both Kalin and Greiger from the darkness," Roman said, "by ending your duel in a draw."

I nodded mutely, waiting for him to continue.

"I'd like you to do the same for my brother Rex."

"LOL." I said. I sometimes have trouble refraining myself from expressing my immediate reactions. Save Rex Goodwin, lol indeed. Rex Goodwin may be the only true villain in the series, keeping in mind, he planned all the 'create a new world' nonsense without being under the influence of magical powers.

To be honest though, keeping Rex Goodwin alive isn't too much trouble, after this arc, all his magical powers would be lost, I could keep him in a cage or something and tell the world he was dead. The real conflict as far as I'm concerned, is between Kalin and Greiger, both naturally has opposing interests in this situation, having been saved and killed by Roman Goodwin respectively. Extending this conflict a little further, all those who knew the truth about Zero Reverse, which is almost everyone in my inner circle, would naturally want to strangle Roman slowly.

"You've defeated so many, surely Rex is no challenge. Of course, I would make it worth your while," Roman coaxed, "Kalin should know what kind of cards I have. The Infernity deck was only the tip of the iceberg."

"So let me get this straight, you want me to risk my life, duel your crazy evil younger brother, at a time when the world might end, for trading cards." I think I summarized the situation pretty well.

"The Dark Signers have much to offer, if you'd let me show you" Roman Goodwin continued to entice me with the promise of (presumably) trading cards.

"What about your destiny?" Kalin questioned doubtfully, "to follow the Ruler of the Netherworld until this world's demise."

"I assure you destruction was never my intent," Roman Goodwin looked away. "I'm afraid my brother had greatly upset the course of destiny. I've been treading the path dictated by fate for nearly twenty years, and now fate is no more. I am mortal after all, so I thought I would fight for my desires like mortals do. Whatever it takes to succeed, it's the mortal way, is it not? "

"I have a pretty good idea what you have," Kalin dismissed, "it's not worth it."

"Well, you heard the man," I said, "we'll just be on our way then." I was secretly relieved Kalin turned him down too. Not because of dueling Rex Goodwin of course, but to agree to Roman's terms as a group in the Satellite, or to reject them after he saved Kalin's. It wasn't a decision I was entirely comfortable with.

He did save Kalin's life. And Vincent, and Ara. On the other hand, acceding to his request would seriously upset my base, which only exists because of him.

I mean, on the one hand, he doomed half of City and its population of half a million into a living hell for almost two decades. On the other hand, he saved three people I cared about. So it's roughly a tie.

Greiger carefully steered me away from Roman Goodwin, pushing Kalin forward while shielding both of us as we made our retreat.

"What about me then?" Roman Goodwin said loudly.

I turned to look, just in time to see him fall onto his knees.

"I possess powers of the Dark Signers, you have no doubt personally witnessed the magics of my arachnid spawns. I can 'convince' a lot of people in high places of your quest before that time comes. Surely that would be of use to your cause" Roman Goodwin looked at me in the eyes, now made possible because we're almost at eye level. I say almost, he's still a couple of inches taller, but I've learned not to be greedy. I didn't even object to the 'cause' thing.

"Sorry Roman," I needed people who believed in building a better world, not brainwashed minions; I hesitated for the fraction of a second, glancing at Kalin, under my eyes, but rejected the idea. Objectively speaking, I liked Roman Goodwin, but there's the rest of my team to think about. And if Kalin's okay with it, which he seems to be, Roman Goodwin can go to hell.

"Let's go guys," I didn't wait for an answer as I walked quickly to the car (yay, car!).

"I could offered you all the wealth of Neo Dominos," Roman Goodwin called out again, I ignored him.

"I could make Rex your puppet if you saved him," Roman Goodwin continued undeterred, "then Neo Dominos is yours for the taking."

So appropriate for a villain, I mused, to offer somebody else's tax dollars to attain his own goals. I'm not entirely sure what that is, I mean saving Rex Goodwin then brainwashing him seems to defeat the point.

"Yuki-sama," Greiger stopped, "it doesn't hurt to listen to him."

I looked at him perplexed, "Greiger?"

"I know we've agreed to develop only a fraction of northern Domino, but we will inevitably relinquish rights to much of the land we cannot yet populate. If we could just borrow money from Neo Domino for a year or two, we could occupy the entire area. We could feed thousands more people!"

"Really?" I asked perplex, I didn't expect Greiger to be on Roman's side, of all things.

"Roman Goodwin is a lot of things, but he's not a liar," Greiger assured me.

"That's not what I meant," I explained, "I mean, you know, what's with Zero Reverse and everything. Even your family was destroyed by Roman Goodwin."

"That is your concern?" Greiger laughed, the corners of his eyes wrinkled in amusement, "I am fortunate that you would take our village in, even after I fell to the shadows. Now I can offer hope to many more villages like my own, I will not be stalled in this path by something Roman Goodwin failed to do. Zero Reverse was a thing of the past, it's pains dulled by the passing of time. Satellites have already picked their sides, whether for or against us. What's Roman Goodwin going to change? I have no doubt most have already forgotten his name."

Curious. Roman had sucked Greiger's entire village into the Netherworld, then tricked Greiger to work for him.

"Roman killed me," Greiger explained at my amused look, "But he also gave me life again. Only in this life was I able to see the Light of your ways, thus I am grateful to him for being a part of my path to eventually reach the destination at your feet."

Flattery really doesn't become him, but he's getting better at it. Nonetheless, I remains curious as to his real motives. On the other hand, I probably feel more impartial to the decision than I should. I bought the area to the North of Domino to ensure that we would continue to be financially well-off after the Dark Signer arc. I could call the entire piece of land my own, or sell part of it to fund my own developments. No matter how little of our land we actually get to keep, it'll still be in the range of thousands of kilometers squared, in other words, more than enough land to provide for me and the people I know.

I imagine the world would be a better place if I were to run the entire place, since I just have a poverty line than the rest of the world at this point. But frankly, I didn't care too much.

I looked to Kalin, who nodded resolutely.

"You're the one facing Rex Goodwin, but if you're willing, it's not a bad plan."

It's funny how he didn't even consider me losing.

"Dueling is _so_ not the problem." I grumbled. I desperately need the resources and capital Roman brings, but how am I supposed to explain that to my team?

* * *

 **A/N:** Yuki is changing :D

 **A/N 2:** Roman is literally the catalyst for the first two seasons. From what limited scenes we have, he seems to lean towards the Signers rather than the Dark Signers. Seriously, if you were trying to win a duel, would you really choose Carly Carmine to duel Jack Atlas?

 **A/N 3:** Sometimes I think the stuff I write are ridiculous, then Croatia beat Argintina 3:0. Fiction has to be credible, reality doesn't. Either that or Messi just made a killing on the betting markets.

 **A/N 4:**

Below is Roman and Rex Goodwin's actual conversation from the show. I think I mentioned it before, it gives a good window through which to look at Roman Goodwin's character and motives.

Rex Goodwin is brought into Roman's lair. Yes, _brought into_ Roman's lair, not against his will but escorted by soldiers obviously not under his command.

"I was starting to think you weren't going to show Rex. But this is a private party, why have you brought these pitiful specimens with you." Roman

"These pitiful specimens are my personal escorts Roman." Rex

"I see. Well unfortunately we have very important matters to discuss, so your soldiers will have to go." Roman summons giant spider to capture soldiers in spider's web (not pornographic at all...) "Now that's more like it, wouldn't you say."

"I have to confess, I thought you have forgotten the promise you made." Roman

"I don't forget promises, Big Brother. I have been living that promise everyday for the past 17 years. I've done everything you asked me to do! I've stayed in contact with Iliaster, I watched the stars, I gathered the Signers. I'm the reason we're standing here now!"

"Be careful how you speak, let us never forget that we are merely pawns in a game bigger than we will ever know. 17 years ago, I had the courage to open Pandora's box! Then putting my faith in Destiny, I entrusted you with Earth's survival. We must hurry. The Netherworld is calling to me, brother. My time here is fleeting. We must do everything we can to bring the great Spirits together. I've played the part that Destiny wanted me to play. I've fed the Army of Shadows, I've opened the gates to the Netherworld. Soon the King of this Netherworld will emerge, ready to fight! But your Signers, Yusei in particular, is trying to close the gate. They're trying to stop Destiny. But so be it. If that's what ends up happening, I suppose we have to respect Fate's will." Roman.

Rex Goodwin looks appropriately taken aback.

"Perhaps you're right, but for the past few years, I've been thinking about everything we're trying to accomplish, I've realized that there's another possible outcome, one that we've never considered." Rex Goodwin implicitly offering to share the throne he craves with his brother.

"There're hundreds of possible outcomes little brother." Roman.

"I suppose you're right. Then let's not waste anymore time, let's finally learn what Destiny has in store." Rex Goodwin. Not _that_ into sharing.

"This is the power that took your father, soon, these beautiful lights will find me as well.

And when he loses, at least in the original, he blew up the bridge, letting himself fall into what is supposedly the energy vortex from the Shadow Realm.


	58. Roman Goodwin Part 2- Fate

**Disclaimer:** I do not own YGO 5Ds

 **A/N:** I wrote this duel a while ago, so the structure is a little different. I didn't change anything because I didn't want different turns to break the flow of dialog. Plus, the duel is so integrated with the plot it makes no sense to separate the two.

Best enjoyed with the previous chapter because they're actually supposed to be one chapter *shrugs*

* * *

I walked back to Roman Goodwin, who hadn't moved an inch.

"After I duel your brother into a draw," I said, "both of you would work for me, correct?"

"Yes Master," Roman Goodwin kept his back straight but looked only to the ground. I was a little creeped out, he's probably plotting revenge or something. But the money from Neo Domino is well worth the risk.

On a whim, I pulled his hair back, forcing him to face me, though his eyes remained downcast. There was no resentment, no fear nor animosity, only acceptance to the fate he proposed.

I poked his forehead, Roman didn't react at all. Kalin facepalmed. I prodded his cheeks, he's a little skinnier than he looked. Greiger looked like he wanted to say something, before stopping with a sigh. If Roman was pretending, he was doing a very good poker face.

Personally, I was very proud that my hands never strayed anywhere below his neck.

"Perfect, so let's duel first, and we'll take care of your brother," I said reasonably.

Roman Goodwin looked up quickly, then lowered his eyes again, "my powers come from the immortal I possess, if He is defeated, even should I survive, my powers would be lost. I would be of no use to you."

"The alternative," I rolled my eyes, "is to have you, the leader of the Dark Signers, keep his powers while the Ruler of the Netherworld roams the earth and we go defeat the keeper of the head of the Crimson Dragon. You see my dilemma."

"You know about Rex?" His eyes widened in surprised, "how?"

I shrugged, I couldn't exactly tell him about the wonderful world of reality.

"She knows a lot of things," Greiger said in my defense.

"It's what brings you here, isn't it?" I asked instead.

"Yes, Master Yuki," he quickly collected himself.

"So I'll defeat your immortal first, then we can deal with your brother."

"What am I good for without my powers?" I could feel Roman Goodwin's eyes on me, sincerely awaiting the answer to his question.

"City planning," Kalin answered for me, grinning.

The saddest part is, instead of chuckling like Greiger, I find myself seriously considering the possibility.

"I don't think so," I said after some deliberations, "I don't think he has any experience in the field. I'm sure we'll find something though, not recruitment either."

Kalin glared at me with mocking resentment.

If the fiction rule of 'all science are the same' applies here, he could still be a very good architect, or a biologist, god knows we don't have any of those (Our science curriculum had largely been diverted away from the biological sciences, not that it would have made a difference given the limited time we had).

"Come on," I patted Roman on the shoulder, secretly pleased I could finally reach somebody's shoulders, "I want to finish this duel before sunset."

"Yes Master Yuki," he got up obediently, walking twenty paces away, the distance of a duel arena.

"I got just enough cards for a Harpies deck, you wanna take it for a test drive?" Kalin selected one deck from his bag and offered it to me.

"I need a deck I'm familiar with for this duel," I turned down the offer, though frankly Harpies decks could be great if you get the right cards.

"You still think he's hiding something," Greiger noted.

"After all that?" Kalin asked incredulously.

"I don't know, maybe." I shook my head slowly, "Or he can't control his immortal, or he could control his immortal but chooses not to, who knows. He's been under its influence for a very long time."

Though oddly enough, Roman Goodwin didn't seek vengeance, as far as I know.

"Let's duel," I announced, "why don't you go first."

* * *

"As you wish," Roman looked a little different, not quite 'taking over the world' crazy, but definitely not the almost submissive man in front of me moments ago, "I end my turn."

He drew and said simply.

I can't tell if he was sincere or has hidden nefarious villain-appropriate plans, and could only proceed with caution. As he had nothing on the field, there's very little I could do.

"I banish Agent of Miracles, Jupiter from my hand to special summon, **Master Hyperion (lv8, 2700/1600)** , in attack mode. Now my monster, attack Goodwin directly." As Roman's life points dropped to 1300, his smile grew wider and I saw the whites of his eyes, already black, expand to occupy most of the iris.

"Why thank you," he laughed, his voice suddenly sounded two notes higher. I still don't understand why magic would mess with your vocal cords. "You see, when I take damage, I can summon **Gorz, the Emissary of Darkness** directly from my hand, and because I took battle damage, I can summon one token whose attack and defense points is equal to the damage I just took." This was the Roman Goodwin who had fallen to darkness, constructed a giant underground organization, kept Rex Goodwin under his thumb for over a decade, and is trying to destroy the world.

Two monsters each with 2700 atk now stood on his side of the field.

Greiger grunted in annoyance.

"We never should have trusted that two-timing piece of trash," Kalin said.

"I place two cards face-down and end my turn," I decided, leaving myself with only two cards in the hand.

"So now it's my turn!" Roman said loudly, "You can't escape fate Yuki. I was confused before, but it's all clear to me now. It was my fate to gather the armies of the shadows, it was my brother's fate to gather the Signers, it is the fate of all those in the Satellite to serve as fuel for the arrival of the King of the Netherworld. And for you, fate had just taken a turn for the worse. I tribute both of my monsters, to summon, **Earthbound Immortal Uru** to the field!"

"After we finish this duel," I responded calmly, it's hard to get scared by 'villainous backstories' when you've heard so many, "you really need to learn dueling again, what you just did there, wasn't the smartest move."

I had to focus on our conversation keep myself distracted, because the truth is, the giant spider is terrifying. Roman didn't bother with theatrics this time, nor did he require time to gather energy for his monster's appearance. Uru simply crossed into this world, a testament to Roman's growing powers and our world's fragile barrier against the Shadow Realmm.

"Talk all you want," Roman said," I play the Spider Web field card, if any of our non-insect monsters attack, this field spell changes the monster to defense position until the end of the next turn. Welcome to my lair!"

"Then I guess I should activate this, Threatening Roar, which forces you to skip your battle phase this turn."

"How? My monster if immune to all spells and trap cards." Roman gasped, looking, for a brief second, like the man who begged me to save his brother.

"But you're not," I explained, "and if you can't enter battle phase, your monster, immortal or not, can't attack."

"A while longer then," Roman said, regaining his composure, "until I can finish the hunt. But you should know, spiders are always waiting in the darkness until it pounces on its prey. I lay two cards face-down and end my turn"

We both had two cards left in hand.

"Right." I said dismissively, "you continue with the bug metaphors, I'm gonna get on with the duel. I draw, and discard Zeradius, Herald of Heaven, to bring The Sanctuary in the Sky field spell into my hand, now my half of the field is shrouded in light." I forget, was it new dueling regulations allowed one field spell to remain on the field for each player or was it always like this?

"Now that I have a light-fairy monster in my grave," I continued, "I can banish it to activate my Master Hyperion's special effect, it can destroy any one card on the field, and I choose your Immortal Uru."

I was really glad to see the giant scary spider be destroyed, its limbs scattered, its corpse spewing endless toxic sludge until the holographic system decided the image sequence was complete and the arachnid turned back into pieces of light, finally disappearing back into the darkness.

Roman's expression visibly changed, from dread to resolute urgency, "attack me, end the duel now! I don't have much time!"

"I don't think so," I denied his request, "I'm going to free you from the Immortals. So you'd be under my control instead." I meant it as a joke, I'm not sure he got it.

I studied his face carefully, the markings of the immortals usually disappeared immediately after the immortal itself was destroyed, but Roman was still covered in red and blue geometric designs.

"I've been under the grasp of this darkness for many years," answered Roman gravely, "it's too late for me. I can feel the Immortal's powers recovering even as we speak. Please, end the duel now before it's too late."

"I do find his marks smaller and fainter," Greiger offered encouragingly, "maybe we need to defeat him more than once."

"Lose one duel and we're dead, remember?" Kalin reminded him.

"Defeating the immortal multiple times in one duel might do the trick though. Did any of your tattoo disappear or recede at all?" I asked carefully, "these markings may be a physical sign of the immortal's influence on your body."

"I have long grown accustomed to these blemishes on my corporeal form," Roman answered peacefully, as though I was the unreasonable one, "they have become a part of me, just like the darkness inside, It's too late."

I glanced at my watch impatiently. Patience is quickly becoming one of my strength (I think) but it's really been wearing thin lately given everything that's happened in the Satellite.

"If you still want me to save your goddamned brother, you'll do as I say," I growled, "just tell me when those designs on your body fades!"

Roman laughed in surprise, "As you wish, Master Yuki." He threw off his cloak, revealing a skin-tight black t-shirt with designs in what is supposedly a lost language that only the immortals understood. That's what gets me though, how do they know what it said? It could be a graffiti that said 'testicles' and he's wearing it proudly like a badge of honor.

To my surprise, Roman grabbed the front of the t-shirt and ripped it off, revealing a ripped, magically enhanced torso that would have been the marvel of Greek sculptors. My eyes followed the prominent pair of blue lines past his nipples, diagonally across his eight-pack, to where the markings stopped just before the navel. My eyes strayed further to the deep V-shaped groove between his legs and abdomen, before catching myself and remembering the duel. I've seen (hundreds) more people naked in this world than I have in the other one, mostly because of the lack of clothing secondary to poverty. Roman's body wasn't particularly better than others, but having this man, who calls me 'master', revealing himself for my examination, was a little different than Vincent deciding he couldn't be bothered with a shirt.

"Now you can observe the changes on my body," Roman said casually, "let's see if my fate can truly be untwined from the shadows."

"Waste of a perfectly good shirt," Greiger commented, the new budget is really getting to him.

"Otherwise it would get stuck on the duel disk," Roman explained perfectly reasonably. Good attention to detail, I made a note of that for his future placement.

I still had a Waboku face down on the field, so I resolved to end my turn.

"I activate," Roman announced, "Revival of the Immortal, so I can bring my **Immortal Uru** back onto the field, though it cannot attack this turn" It's getting a little hard to tell which Roman this was.

"With my immortal on the field, I can now activate my second face-down card Earthbound Whirlwind, which destroys all spell and trap cards on your side of the field."

"I activate, Waboku, which decreases all battle damage I take this turn to zero, and none of my monsters can be destroyed in battle this turn." I countered. That's why I kept Waboku instead of Negate Attack in my deck.

"I had no intentions of mounting an attack this turn," Roman smirked, "but I _can_ do this, I play the magic card, Destiny Activator. First, I send the card from the top of my deck to the graveyard," he sent another Spider's Web field spell to the grave yard, "next, when you draw, if you draw a spell card, your life points would be halved!"

That can't be right, I gulped. That continuous spell card was definitely too powerful to exist in the real world.

"So, Master Yuki," he pronounced the last two words disdainfully, "draw you next card."

I did, Mystical Space Typhoon. It's definitely the card I needed, though I would have preferred Heavy Storm, but my LP dropped from 4000 to 2000.

"And this is only the beginning of my powers!" Roman's 'I'm a villain' laugh is back.

"I think I'll use my spell," I decided, "to destroy your Spider Web field spell. If my memory serves me correctly, your immortal is destroyed at the end of the turn when there's no active field spell."

I'm already at 2000LP, aka one direct attack away from losing. It's not going to be significantly different from 1000LP. It's much more important to get rid of his Immortal before it could attack than Destiny Activator.

Roman grunted but did not respond.

"I lay two cards face down and end my turn." I announced, leaving myself with an empty hand.

The giant spider came tumbling down for the second time, I could see the lines on Roman's body fading, though the ones on his face remained untouched. It'll take a couple more times I guess.

Roman drew again, his face twisted in a fit of rage and unease, it wasn't hard to tell which Roman this was. He had a feral look in his eye when he saw the next card, "This, Yuki Tono, would be your demise!"

Kalin and Greiger looked nervous, I was more like, meh. Talk is cheap, and both of Roman's schizophrenic personalities (let's call them that for now) have been talking a lot.

"Since you have a monster on the field and I don't, I can special summon the dark tuner **Spider Cocoon (lv5, 0/0)** to the field, next I will use the magic card Level Mirroring, allowing my monster to imitate the level of your Master Hyperion on the field, making my monster lv8 also. Next, I summon **Silent Insect (lv2, 200/300** , negates all face-up continuous spells & traps) in attack mode. I dark tune my lv 2 Silent Insect with my lv8 Spider Cocoon. When Shadows are swallowed-"

"I'm sorry," I had to ask, in case I didn't get another chance, "did you come up with that cute little chant?"

"What?" Roman's spiel was cut short, but the dark synchro summon continued, proving definitively that their motto is only for show.

The Cocoon extends its web, engulfing the much smaller, but no less disgusting, insect in its clutches.

"Did you come up with that speech or did somebody help you?" I persisted, "did you teach everybody and was like 'say this when you dark synchro to emphasize our evilness' or did it just sort of catch on?"

"Now come forth," Roman eventually decided to ignore my question, **"Underground Arachnid (lv -6, 2400/1600)**."

I hesitated, but did not activate Solemn Judgement.

"This spider has a special ability," Roman said, "once per turn, I can take control of one of your monsters on the field, and I think I'll take your Master Hyperion."

"I don't think so, I activate, Breakthrough Skill, which negates your monster's effects for this turn."

Roman grunted again, but made no protest as he signaled the end of his turn.

I was relieved I could draw again, it felt so odd having no cards in my hand. I drew Agent of Mystery- Earth (lv2, tuner, 1000/800), a tricky card now that I have only 2000LP, so that any monster with 3000atk can wipe me out in one turn. Also I can't attack with it, seeing as Roman only had 1100LP left, and I didn't want to kill him yet.

"Master Hyperion, squash his bug!" I ordered happily, watching the giant radioactive spider being blown to smithereens. "I think that'll be all for my turn." Roman's LP dropped to 1000, just enough for my Agent monster to kill him if I had summoned it.

Roman drew again, his lips set in a taut line, "I end my turn," he said, eyes downcast.

I frowned, I didn't want to defeat and therefore kill him, but I can't free him if he doesn't summon his immortal soon. I had no idea what card he had, or if he would lose if I attacked. I drew, Herald of Orange Light, I showed the card to Roman, which is the most annoying part of the Destiny Activator spell. Not being able to do anything else, I ended my turn.

"I see you're still imagining you could save Roman Goodwin," Roman laughed darkly, "let me show you that you should really be more concerned with saving yourself. I summon, **Phantom of Chaos (lv4, 0/0)** , in attack mode. This fiend has a special effect, I can banish one monster from my graveyard, and it becomes that monster for one turn. I banish my Immortal Uru from my graveyard."

Even as he said those last words, the markings on his body retreated further, they only extend as low as his neck now. Even his facial tattoos seemed to have faded slightly, though the coloring is hard to determine in the darkness. On the other hand, the shapeless mist gathered on the field shifted until it formed into a replica of the spider.

"Roman," I reprimanded, "you know exactly what cards I have and you still make mistakes like this. I discard my Herald of Orange Light and Agent of Mystery- Earth to the graveyard to negate the effect of your monster."

The spider was dispelled, Roman's tattoos retreated further, only faintly uneven colors remained, like permanent marker after fervent washing.

"I place one card face down and end my turn." Roman said slowly, struggling with each word, "attack me! _If you don't want this mortal to live_." I could almost read the internal conflict off his face.

I drew Upstart Goblin this time, grimacing as I was dealt another 1000 damage, leaving me with just 1000.

"I activate the effect of my Master Hyperion," I said, "I banish Herald of Orange Light from the graveyard to destroy your Destiny Activator!"

That was the only card that dealt me damage in this duel, to the tune of 3000LP.

"Now I activate, Upstart Goblin, I can draw one card, even though you gain 1000LP."

I drew Dust Tornado, and laid it down.

"Master Hyperion, destroy his Phantom." Phantom of Chaos takes no damage from battle, so Roman stayed alive for a while longer.

"You have fought well," Roman started ominously, "but you must understand, mortals are only the instrument to achieving a much greater cause. You are destined to lose, the King of the Netherworld is destined to rise, and this world is destined to fall."

Okay, that's definitely not the real Roman Goodwin, the real one would be rambling on about the destined battle between good and evil instead.

"Didn't hear you say that when I didn't attack these past couple of turns," I replied sarcastically, "got a lucky draw?"

"It's not this card that would aid me in my victories. I activate my trap, Escape from the Dark Dimension, which allows me to special summon one of my banished dark monsters, come back to the field, Earthbound Immortal Uru!"

As a dark vortex opened on the ground, a giant spider crawled out of the pits of fire and lava onto the field.

"Don't celebrate yet, I activate Dust Tornado," Lucky draw or magical forces at play? I can't tell anymore. "Which destroys your trap card, sending your immortal back into its own dimension."

As soon as the giant beast crawled out of the hole, it fell back in. I found the destruction of oversized insects (okay, insect-types) extremely satisfying.

The marks on his face have entirely disappeared, the inky coloring of the whites of his eyes were slowly fading away, but Roman didn't look like he was coming to his senses yet.

"I set one card face-down," Roman said solemnly, "and end my turn."

As I drew my next card, I heard the now-familiar ominous laughter.

"So this is the end, Yuki. All my life, I have trusted myself to destiny, letting it guide me wherever it may. Now I'm going to leave myself to destiny one last time." Roman Goodwin said at an unnaturally high speed, his right hand reaching for his face-down card even as his left metallic arm moved out of the way. It looked more entertaining than threatening.

"Attack me now," Roman asked, then in a shriller voice, " _and all your efforts to save his soul is wasted_."

Maybe I should send him to a therapist after this blows over. Did we have therapists?

"Finish the duel before it's too late! _I'll see you in hell, don't keep me waiting._ "

Yep, definitely a therapist.

"Let's see it," I said, "that card you want to use so badly."

Roman looked at me in disbelief as his right hand activated the trap from the last turn, "Fate alone shall decide the outcome of this duel! I activate The Paths of Destiny. When this trap card is activated, we each toss a coin, if it lands on heads, the player gain 2000 life points; if it lands on tails, the player loses 2000 life points. Now you will suffer my fate, to be pushed by circumstances beyond mortal control, to struggle helplessly against the hands of Destiny, and only pray that Humanity escapes the clutches of Fate. What are you going to do now, Yuki Tono, when your life is decided by a coin toss?"

"Negate it," I smirked, "I activate the trap card, Solemn Judgement. By giving up half of my life points, I can negate the activation of one trap or spell card."

The illusion created by the trap shimmered like electrical connection in a Canadian snowstorm and faded. My LP dropped down to 500.

"I summon, **Agent of Creation- Venus (1600/0)** to the field, and use it to attack directly." Roman endured the attack silently as his LP dropped to 400, looking lost and forlorn.

"I think the last trap was my doing," he said after some time, "the immortal's influences had been eradicated from me when it was destroyed for the last time. No, my last move can't be blamed on the Shadows that once overtook me, it was the darkness entrenched in my very soul that tried to destroy you."

Of course he'd have 'darkness inside his soul', or as I put it, be resentful and angry at the world. He wasted the best years of his life on some long-lost prophecy that doesn't look like it was going to pan out. He played his part like a good little puppet, knowing he'd be cast aside when the time comes, believing it was the right thing to do for humanity. And just now he saw he could've been the puppeteer all this time. He spent his entire life trying to save humanity within the limited bounds he thought fate permitted, and now everything just went down the drains because of his younger brother whom he was still trying to save. I'd be resentful too. He definitely needs medical help though, the whole 'fighting with yourself' things can't be natural.

It took another 5 turns before I drew Fairywind (destroy all face-up continuous spells and traps, deal 300 LP damage to both players for each card) and ended the duel, by then we could already hear the roar of a giant slime-like creature.

Roman Goodwin collapsed, I felt my legs buckle before Greiger held me up.

"Get out of here," I said weakly. Greiger didn't need to be told twice as he held me up with one arm like a UPS package and rushed to the car, shoving me in the back. Kalin jumped into the driver's seat and was about to leave when he saw my disapproving glares. Rolling his eyes, the ex-Dark Signer turned the car around so Greiger had time to pick Roman Goodwin up off the ground and stuffed the half-conscious villain (ex-villain?) into the car

Kalin didn't need to be told twice as he started the car, racing back to the Development.

Roman Goodwin struggled instinctively against Greiger's arm, when the brunet slapped him none-too-gently across the cheek, the leader of the Dark Signers finally came to his senses.

Greiger put him in the backseat also, because Kalin's driving, and if either one of the three of us were to sit up front, it would provide Roman with a better opportunity to take somebody hostage. So I as squished to the side, with Greiger sitting between Roman and I, in the backseat of a sports car that really wasn't built for people their size. I wondered how I could get more room, but since Roman was in no shape the drive, the only possible solution is to have Roman sit in Greiger's lap, and I had to dismiss it as an unlikely idea.

"What are you going to do about Rex Goodwin?" Kalin asked pointedly, metaphorical venom dripping from his fangs, directing the question at no one in particular.

"It's up to Master Yuki to decide," Roman replied softly, I looked at him in surprise. "You negated the destiny I left in Fate's hands," Roman explained still with his eyes downcast, "so now my destiny is your design."

I gulped.

"Hey Yuki, you should decide to kill Rex Goodwin." Kalin muttered darkly.

"It's hard to justify _not_ getting rid of him," Greiger helped, "he did ruin the lives of millions of people in the Satellite." Not quite, I thought to myself, Rex Goodwin was a manipulative asshole, but he was smart enough to not leave enough traces to be condemned.

"Rex never hurt anybody," Roman defended his younger brother, "As the Director of Domino City, he did better than most people at his position, certainly better than his predecessors."

"What?" Kalin turned around and asked incredulously, looking to me for confirmation.

"That's technically true," I smiled, now fully understanding the defense the older Goodwin has chosen to use, "by his inaction, Rex Goodwin has damned many in the Satellite to a life of misery, but it's true that he's only guilty of inaction, which I assume Roman is going to put onto incompetence."

"Goodwin did more for the Satellite than most other Directors in most countries," Greiger explained, "that's why I chose to go to him for help."

"You're joking." Kalin said it as a simple statement.

"Rex Goodwin needed the lives in the Satellite to sacrifice to the Immortals and the Demon of the Netherworld, so the death rate actually plummeted after he took over," I explained, fully aware of the irony of the situation, "and it remained lower than most other slums in this country. Of course, living standards was another story."

"So we have nothing on Goodwin?" Kalin demanded angrily.

"We don't need anything on Goodwin," Greiger replied for me. Kalin was too close to the situation to assess it properly.

I continued for the stoic man, "We will need to defeat Rex Goodwin, after which it'll be much easier to kill him than not. Even if we keep him alive, it doesn't have to be forever."

Kalin stuttered, he was still very unused to the ideas of, well, evilness.

"Thus my brother's fate is in your hands, Master Yuki," Roman repeated, "and I beg of you to spare him."

* * *

 **A/N:** Yugioh is a card game, and is designed to make you collect cards. So I can't be the only one who wants to collect the characters too. :D

 **A/N 2:** Life should be interspersed with fun things and responsible things XD


	59. Interlude

**Disclaimer:** I don't own YGO 5Ds

* * *

"Yuki Tono's Plans Should be Keeping You up at Night"

"The Zephyrs: The Deadliest Gang We've Ever Seen"

"Don't be fooled: An Insider Look at What's to Come Beyond Chaos' Web of Deceit"

"Why You Should Be Fleeing the Satellite and Why Kessler is the Reason Behind it Again"

"The Light from Neo Domino City: Five Reasons Director Goodwin's Factories Will Win you Over"

"What You Read May Surprise You: Here is How Tono is Ruining the Satellite"

I glanced at the tablet from over Galen's shoulder, smiling tiredly at the familiar headlines. Material like this has been popping up throughout the Satellite since Rex Goodwin officially deemed us a threat about a month back, now they're everywhere. Annoying as it sounds (and is), I've frankly gotten used to it. Unfortunately, given that tkhe education system had crashed 17 years ago, an entirely unsurprising proportion of the Satellite population had taken it as gospel.

They'd rather believe Goodwin's words over mine, pouring over every public announcement that they read on the tablet I created, bought with the money we printed, earned from the economy we built.

"This latest one says you're a spy sent by Tokyo to destroy the Satellite," Felice supplied helpfully with a teasing smirk.

The obvious irony being, there wasn't anything worth destroying before I got here. The less obvious irony being, this lack of public support might end up being our downfall. In a non-magical reality, it would have been. Propaganda is the easiest way for Rex Goodwin to completely destroy us. But in this world, individuals and organizations are tried on the dueling fields before they're tried in the court of public opinion, for better or for worse.

"Those traitors!" Galen threw his PDA against the far wall, it shattered to pieces as a consequence of our lower quality standards for reusing plastics. There're only so much recyclable goods available, especially seeing as Domino factories were beginning to target and remove materials we could use.

"It's human nature," Vincent said darkly, flipping through the same news stories. "To be enticed by the slightest gain, to their own detriment."

It doesn't help that Domino City had unveiled its new plan two days ago. It closed old factories and opened new ones with income and benefits comparable to ours. Residents of the Satellite who hesitated to join us for fear of repercussions from the government swarmed the new facilities, as did over a third of our own staff. More are likely to follow, given the rapid increase of food prices in the Satellite after Neo Domino cut off exports.

It was perhaps the most dangerous thing the Domino City Director could have done. Not to attack directly or infiltrate our ranks, but simply offer a legal alternative to our limited operations. With much more resources and a larger market, they would crush us in a fair fight.

That's not to say we were faced with a fair fight, Goodwin raised tariffs and perhaps most detrimentally, quadrupled food prices to the Satellite. Most people, myself included, still depended upon those acid cubes from Domino City to survive. While we ordered similar products from any other city, it would take weeks to arrive, or even maybe even months if Goodwin is willing to put in the effort to add some extra bureaucratic red tape.

"We have to get rid of Goodwin," Felice muttered, turning around and noticing Roman, she elaborated sheepishly, "Present company not included."

Vincent snorted at that, clearing disagreeing with the exclusion of present company.

"It's not just Goodwin, the Satellite isn't exact on our side either." Galen replied, restating the obvious. After all, we did kidnap all gang leaders in the city and basically threaten them to do our bidding. As much as I laughed at the idea of 'duel gangs' (and still do), these people hold significant influence in their respective communities. In an area where the main source of information comes from Neo Domino, those who don't trust Domino tend to trust information from 'those in the know', like the people we kidnapped not too long ago. "They still think you're trying to take over the Satellite."

"I'm not _trying_ to take over the Satellite, I _have_ taken over the Satellite." I grumbled. "I bought the darn place. " Technically, I could kick all of those people off my property if I wanted to, Sector Security included, but then I'd be left with like 5 thousand people. Also they'd riot and I'd die.

"Anyway, they think you're using the Satellite as your base to take over the world," Chaos shrugged. Knowing me and the rest of our barely-literate team, we had originally found the idea hilarious. Then we realized how many people truly believed in the idea.

I was frankly a little insulted, just because there has been an unreasonable number of local organizations trying to take over the world doesn't mean I deserve to be counted among the ranks of anime villains doubling as comic relief. Taking over the world... We barely hire more people than my local Walmarts. Though to be entirely fair, if I had been in some other corner of the world, and had just learned about some gang in a small city that barely hired more people than my local Walmart had gotten their hands on a weapon that can blow up the planet, I'd think they're trying to take over the world too.

Point being, popular opinion isn't in our favor at this exact moment, which makes Goodwin's blockade even more effective than it otherwise would have been. I haven't yet managed to convince Jack and Yusei of my decision to leave the Satellite either, thankfully I haven't lost Akiza's support.

"You know, all of our problems would be solved if we could just get rid of Rex Goodwin." Galen commented casually, getting back on topic.

"Would you like me to kidnap him?" Greiger asked tentatively.

The rest of my crew burst out laughing.

"I don't kidnap people for a living, Greiger," I couldn't help a reluctant smile.

"No, of course not, Yuki-sama," Greiger immediately agreed.

"Not that I don't want to," I added thoughtfully. "It's just that most people whose kidnapping would help my case are too difficult to kidnap, or their kidnapping would result in too large a repercussion..." I mused over people I might kidnap, eventually abandoning the very tempting idea. Though in Rex Goodwin's case, it seems much easier just to murder him, if it ever came to that.

"Rex is merely a stepping stone in the grand scheme of things," Roman commented, leaning against the wall as to appear more relaxed and less intimidating (It's not working). "His obsession with the gods would soon be his downfall. It is really our decisions for a future beyond Neo Domino City that would decide our fate."

He's right of course, and for once, he's using 'fate' without the capital 'F', referencing our financial and political future rather than destiny of the human race. He's a quick learner, I'll give him that much.

The Satellite's problems go far beyond Rex Goodwins propaganda, and that's at least part of the reason why I want to move away to start fresh.

"Alright, we'll just wait for Goodwin's challenge then." I shrugged, "In the meantime, keep an eye on Yusei and Jack, should really be any day now."

Since Rex Goodwin had converted himself into a Dark Signer, the Netherworld monster would still be capable of crossing over. If I remember correctly, Rex Goodwin would challenge the Signers when the Netherworld Monster enters this world, whenever that is. In the meantime, there's not much we can do except to deal with the unrest in the Satellite and plan for our (hopefully imminent) departure.

* * *

"There's always been one thing I don't understand about you," Chaos sat down on the sofa beside my desk, choosing to stay in my office (yay, office!) after the crowd had dispersed studying me carefully. I haven't seen him like this since we first met.

"Of course, whatever you want to know." I replied, looking up with a smile. He's been my right hand throughout my entire time in the Satellite, sometimes it feels like I've know him forever.

"How do you know this will work out?" Chaos asked, "This move you're talking about, this brand new city you want to build. I've never seen a Satellite so ambitious."

I shrugged. Technically, Rex Goodwins had been more ambitious than me but this is clearly not the time or place for that argument.

Chaos continued. "They say Atlas is proud but he's nothing compared to you. You honestly believe everything decision you make is not only right, but the best thing that could possibly be done, that's more arrogant than Atlas could ever dream of. But why?"

"Why?" I repeated.

"Why. Why do you believe this, how dare you rush into one venture after another, betting the Satellite's future at every turn, and expect you would come out victorious." Chaos stated his question as a statement instead.

"I don't. I don't believe anybody knows the intricacies of exactly how to change the world to our will. We're all wandering in the darkness, looking for that better world we created in our daydreams. The difference between you and I is... am? You and me? I and you?" I coughed, and continued under Chaos' glare, "The difference between you and I am that I'm not imaging it. I haven't seen our destination per say, but I've at least seen a rest stop. Not the way a better world could be, but the way is is. Not a great world mind you, not even a good world, but definitely a better one."

My previous reality may be messed up in a million and one ways, but it is undoubtedly better than this one. So unlike them, I have a concrete idea of what I'm trying to achieve, as opposed to abstract concepts and ideals.

"What are you trying to say?" Chaos asked cautiously.

"You've never seen a better world, Chaos." I said with a wistful smile, "Even before Zero Reverse, your world wasn't like mine. You, and the entire Satellite is fighting for a figment of your imaginations. It's really no wonder none of you made it."

"I don't know if my decision is correct, but it's most likely to be the least wrong option we have. I'm confident for a reason." I have the backing of an entire world behind me.

* * *

The Netherworld monster is just around the corner, its powers seeping through to this world so that even those without magical powers could feel its presence. Crime rates, especially violent crime rates, increased dramatically in its wake. Signers have grown progressively more agitated, even ex-Dark Signers were constantly under the pressures of its powers.

I was the only one apparently oblivious, to the magic side of things at least. The tension in the Satellite, on the other hand, had mounted to suffocating levels. Even I was not immune to that.

"Master Yuki," Roman murmured quietly, approaching me from the halls. Him calling me that still gives me goosebumps, I'm not sure if it's the good kind yet so I haven't corrected him.

"What is it?" I paused from perusing our newest source of income, the Dark Signers... I.e. Roman's assets... What used to be Roman's assets.

Roman had been unexpectedly forthcoming in allowing us access to everything he owned, or as he put it, 'he had given me all that was his, body and soul'. I was more disturbed than moved by the comment, but he had indeed been true to his word.

Despite the open hostility he received from literally everybody, with the dubious exception of ex-Dark Signers, Roman had proven himself quite useful by knowing things the rest of us don't, such as taxation, organizational structure, methods of recruitment, methods of transportation. You know, the non-magical, non-world-saving stuff that is nonetheless crucial to our continued survival in the Satellite and beyond. I have to give the guy some credit. He went from the leader of an evil organization to municipal government middle management overnight and he's taking it remarkably well.

"I-I had hoped to ask you about your plans for Rex, if you had already had something in mind." Roman approached the subject carefully.

"I do," I admitted, slightly irritated. Roman was obviously hoping I'd hold back in a game that might get me killed, while Rex Goodwin is actively trying to obliterate me both inside and outside of our upcoming children's card games, but Roman did pay for the privilege. "A couple of ideas actually, depending on how cooperative he is. I promised not to kill him unless I had to, and there's really nothing more I can do."

"Rex is not as challenging an opponent as he first appears," Roman began a little hesitantly. I wonder if he's guilty over ratting out his brother or if he's afraid I wouldn't believe him, "I am familiar with his dueling style and his immortal. He might have upgraded his deck but there're things he can't change so easily."

"I know." I replied. I know Rex Goodwin's strategies and deck too, I've seen how he actually plays, in the anime I mean. That's probably more than Roman knows given Rex had obviously been playing him like a fiddle for the last god-knows how many years.

"After his defeat," Roman continued, undeterred, "The control of Neo Domino would naturally transfer to you."

I looked at him skeptically. I don't think governmental positions are transferred through the results of a children's card game. No, not even in this world.

"Tokyo might object, of course," Roman added, correctly reading my skepticism, "But with Rex under your control, there's not much they can do in the short term. Of course," He leaned in a little closer, I could almost feel the heat of his breath in my ears, "I would ensure Rex is completely under your control."

"Don't worry about it," I smiled thinly, tilting my head just a little but nonetheless turning away, "I told you I'd try to keep your brother alive, and I will."

"Yes, Master Yuki," Roman said a little too quickly. "I have no doubt of your abilities at all."

Roman doesn't talk this much unless he's unsure, and it took me a second to figure out why all my promises seem to have fallen on deaf ears.

"You think I've been too lenient." I noted with a grin.

"...Generous." Roman managed, straightening up and scuffing the tiles with his foot, staring at the ground. "More than I had a right to expect."

"Right." I couldn't help the smile, "I guess I'm just used to a higher standard of evil."

Roman looked up at me, perplexed. I smiled back, with a little bit more sincerity than he expected, maybe a little bit more than I intended. There's more truth in my words than he'll ever know.

Neither of the Goodwin brothers were really fighting for personal gain, already, that sets them apart from the majority of the population and certainly the _vast_ majority of the political world in my previous reality. Roman Goodwin honestly believed he was destined to serve as a pawn in a game between supernatural powers, and any resistance on his part would not only be futile, but also lead to worse destruction than Zero Reverse. Rex Goodwin wanted to free humanity from the Gods (so that he could become said god, but that's another story), and lead the human race into prosperity.

Both lofty and stupid ideas, but neither necessarily selfish. They certainly erred in the methods in attaining said goals, but given what they knew in the anime, their decisions are actually not unreasonable.

In a reality with lower moral standards, such as the last one I had been in, they might have been called the good guys.

"Look," I reached out and ruffled his hair impetuously, his wide-eyed look of surprise actually made him look innocent for a brief second, "I told you I'll take care of it and I will. Stop worrying, your brother hasn't done enough to quite justify his death yet."

* * *

 **A/N:** Lost my entire Rex Goodwin chapter and a bunch of clips :( Because of real life stuff that I'm not taking care of either... I don't like real life stuff.

 **A/N 2:** On a completely unrelated note, does Messi and Ronaldo remind anybody else of Yugi and Kaiba? LMAO


End file.
